Rise of the Tomb Raider
by gamePsycho11
Summary: Sequel to "Tomb Raider 2013: Not alone". Read that before you read this. Rating for violence and language.
1. Prologue

**What's up everyone?!**

 **Sorry this took so long. I recently got a new computer, so I was taking some time to get used to it.**

 **Plus, the trailer for Spider-Man: Far From Home finally came out, so excited!**

 **And I'm already excited for Kingdom Hearts III, Captain Marvel, and Avengers: Endgame! SO MUCH HYPE FOR SO MANY THINGS!**

 **Once again, this story was co-written with my good friend, XFangHeartX.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider**

 **All OCs belong to me and Fang**

* * *

 ** _London, England_**

Lara Croft was walking down a dark alleyway. It was nighttime... and it was raining

As she was nearing her home, she noticed a flashlight shining in her flat.

Someone had broken in!

As whoever it was looked around, a tape recorder was playing.

" **It is the greatest cruelty of life...that we are all too swiftly taken from it...we age, we decay, we die...** "

The flashlight shined on pictures of Himiko, as well as a file that said "Reincarnation Research" and a scroll of Anubis.

" **...But what do we leave behind?** **Bones? Dust? What of the soul?** "

The flashlight moved to a wall of newspaper articles.

" **Does it endure beyond our worldly existence? I believe it does.** "

Then it moved to a map of the world, along with various pictures of locations, like a man in front of a waterfall, a knight kneeling before a golden goblet, and some sort of ruins.

" **A truth lies at the heart of many myths and stories. A truth not of science, but something more profound... the key to unlocking everlasting life.** "

The flashlight moved to pictures of Joan of Arc and Grigori Rasputin.

Then it moved to a picture of Jesus Christ and several other pictures.

" **But...I am not alone in this search. They're watching me, following my every step.** "

The flashlight fell on an old Medieval drawing of knights on horses, and on the shield was what looked like a black hawk with its wings spread, and there was a name written on it: Trinity.

" **I know them by name, now...Trinity. An ancient, violent sect with designs on controlling the future of humanity.** "

The flashlight moved to pictures of Lara, Sam, Owen and Tommy at college graduation, one of the whole Endurance crew, and several pics of Lara and Owen together. In most of them, they were kissing.

Then to a framed picture of Lord Richard Croft, Lara as a little girl, and a blond woman.

" **I must proceed carefully, for the sake of my family. If anything were to ever happen to Lara... or Ana, I could never forgive myself...** "

Just then, the door was heard being opened, causing the mysterious stranger to turn and see the doorknob turning. Realizing that Lara was coming back, whoever it was escaped through the window.

Lara entered her flat, looked around and spotted the open window...then went over and looked outside, as if to check to see if anyone was there. When she saw no one around, she closed the window.

Hearing the noise of her tape recorder still running, she walked over and turned it off.

Not long after, she heard footsteps approaching.

Quickly and quietly, Lara went over to the door, grabbing her pickaxe on the way, before she stood against the wall and raised it, preparing to strike. That's when the door opened, and Lara was about to swing until she saw that it was a woman with short, blonde hair wearing a beige jacket.

"Oh!" she cried. "It's me!"

"Ana!" Lara exclaimed. "Oh god, I'm so sorry!"

Ana only sighed and shook her head. Nobody could really blame Lara for acting this way. After all...the events of what happened on Yamatai still haunted her and the things she had learned to do was based on muscle memory, even though she knew she wasn't there anymore and nobody would hurt her.

"What are you doing here?" Lara asked.

"I saw that the gutter press was attacking you again," said Ana, holding up a tabloid paper with Lara's face on it.

The front page said " ** _Another Crazy Croft?! A Daughter Just Like Her Father?_** "

"I thought you might use some company," said Ana. "Especially since...Owen..."

"...I don't want to talk about him, right now," said Lara as she checked the hallway, "Were you followed?"

"Followed?" Ana questioned. "Of course not. What's going on?"

Lara closed the door and turned on the light to her flat, "I think I've found the tomb."

"Oh, you can't be serious," Ana said incredulously.

"The myth of the prophet is real," Lara said. "Dad was right."

'Not this again,' thought Ana.  
"Lara," she said, "you father was...unwell."

"No," Lara denied as she looked through some documents on her coffee table. "He was close to a great discovery. Tangible evidence of the immortal soul!"

Ana sighed, "I loved Richard. I would've married him if he'd asked. But he was a broken man." She placed her hands on Lara's shoulders. "I don't want to see you end up like him."

"But Ana, he was right," Lara said as she turned to face her. "It was everyone else who was wrong." She then went over to her computer. "The tomb is in Syria."

"Syria?!" Ana asked. "Oh, god, Lara, this is madness!" She paused as she blinked her eyes, as if trying to keep herself from crying. "...Get your life sorted. Go back to the manor."

"...You know I can't go back there," said Lara.

"This obsession ruined your father," said Ana, "And...it ruined your relationship with Owen."

"I said not to talk about him!" Lara shouted, then calmed down a bit. "I saw something... something I... I can't explain. Now I understand what Dad was going through."

"It's all fairytales," Ana said. "Nonsense. Don't go down this road. You know where it leads."

"It's the only thing that makes sense to me now," Lara said. "I'm going to find the prophet's tomb, Ana..."

Ana sighed again, "I'm sorry Lara, but THIS is why Owen left."

"NO!" Lara shouted as she turned to face her...with tears in her eyes. "...I'm right...I know that I'm right! And when I prove it...he'll come back! He has to come back after that!"

She then sniffled as she put her hands over her eyes.  
"...He has to...!" she whimpered.

"You know that's not true," Ana said. "Unlike you, he didn't want to find the so called key to eternal life."

Lara collapsed to the floor, sobbing as more tears fell from her eyes. She reached into her pocket and pulled out something.

The ring Owen had given her when he proposed.

"...Owen..." she sobbed.

Ana went over and put her hand on her back, trying to comfort her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The nightmare of Yamatai was still fairly fresh in everyone's minds.

Lara had been suffering from survivor's guilt and was plagued with nightmares. Sometimes, they wouldn't be so bad, but other times, they'd be so severe, she'd wake up screaming and crying and Owen had to comfort her.

Owen himself had a few nightmares, but they were starting to go away thanks to visits with his therapist.

But things got worse when Sam was arrested. Lara and Owen went to visit her, only to find that she was being held for psychiatric evaluation. They were horrified at Sam referring to herself as "We", realizing that Himiko was still alive within Sam. Lara promised to help her.

The, Lara finally decided to publicly talk about what happened to the crew of the Endurance during the search for Yamatai.

However, Lara's account of what happened was discredited, because she had no proof except for the many journal entrees she and Owen found, which were dismissed as fabrications.

Lara's uncle even forced her to seek professional help if she wished to take control of her inheritance.

To appease him and show she was co-operating, she began to see a therapist. But, Lara was cold and distant to him, though she did admit to being negatively affected by the aftermath of Yamatai, blaming herself for the death of her friends, and Sam being imprisoned.

But even worse, she kept delaying plans for her and Owen's wedding, completely drowning herself in her father's research, unintentionally pushing Owen away.

Until finally, one day, Owen asked her to stop working and talk to him. But this led to their first fight.

"What the HELL is going on with you, Lara?!" he asked her. "You're freaking me out, here!"

"I'm telling you, my Father knows something!" Lara shouted. "He has to know something!"

"Stop it!" Owen shouted. "I don't wanna hear about this anymore, okay?!"

"Why not?!" Lara questioned. "You said you'd support on this!"

"I did, but this isn't archeology, it's mania!" Owen responded. "Look, maybe your father WAS right. But, even if he was, what we're talking about is wrong."

"How is it wrong?" Lara questioned. "We're talking about overcoming fatal diseases, breaking off the shackles of being mortal-"

"That right there!" Owen interrupted. "THAT'S what I have a problem with! Overcoming diseases is one thing, but being mortal is part of life. If you just keep living forever, everyone that you love passes away while you keep living. All these fools that think immortality is the ultimate power, look at happened to Garlic Jr. and Winters from TMNT..."

"Those are just cartoons, Owen, and you know it!" Lara shouted.

"But they are perfect examples that show that immortality is not all it's cracked up to be," Owen said. "Besides, don't act like you're the only one torn up about Roth, Alex and Grim."

"Don't bring them into this!" Lara warned him.

"We were all there, Lara!" Owen continued. "I may not have been there when Alex died, but I was for Roth and Grim's. Yes, they still haunt me, but I'm not avoiding it by using an obsession about some fucked up research my dad was doing just because he couldn't accept one of the things that makes us human!"

 **SLAP**

Owen stumbled back a bit...holding his stinging cheek while Lara seethed angrily.

"How dare you!" she yelled. "Insulting what my father worked on! You may not appreciate this, but I do! IT'S THE ONLY THING THAT MAKES SENSE TO ME NOW!"

"Oh, so we don't make sense anymore?!" Owen questioned. "Tell me, what's more important to you Lara; your father's research or us?!"

Lara opened her mouth to answer...but then she stopped.

"I...I..." she stammered before Owen put his hands on her shoulders.

"Please, Lara, I'm begging you," he said. "Just think this over!"

Lara knew she screwed up, and even worse, she didn't have an answer.

Taking her silence as a "no", Owen sighed,  
"Fine, I see how it is."

"I'm sorry..." Lara apologized.

"No you're not," said Owen. "...I can't deal with this anymore."

"No, Owen!" Lara begged.

"I'm sorry, but you've proven this is more important to you than anything else," Owen said. "I still love you, but I can't put up with this anymore."

He let go of her shoulders and walked to the door. Some familiar whining stopped him, and he turned to see Tsume, Hana and their puppies looking at him with longing.

"...Come on, you guys," said Owen as he walked away, and the wolf family followed after him, leaving the flat...and Lara fell to her knees and sobbed.

Now she'd screwed up even more. She'd pushed away the love of her life.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _End Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara sniffled as she sat on the couch, wiping her eyes.

"...If only he knew," she said. "If he just knew...! If only he knew...how sorry I am...!"

"Then let this go," Ana told her. "Go find him and apologize."

"I can't," Lara said. "I have to see this through."

She turned to a map of Syria that was hanging on the wall.

As much as she wanted to make things right...she had to do this.

* * *

 **Yeah, Lara's obsession pushed Owen away...**

 **Read and review, please!**


	2. Chapter 1: The Prophet's Tomb

**Sorry for the somewhat heartbreaking prologue.**

 **But if you think about it; Lara was so obsessive during most of this game that she pushed everyone away. So, as sad as it was, I think she might've done the same to Owen.**

 **Now, if anyone doesn't like that the chapters may not be long and not as much detail; you don't have to read the story.**

 **Fang and I do the best we can.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. Any OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: The Prophet's Tomb**

 _ **"What makes someone reach beyond the boundaries of human experience, to face the unknown? As children, we question the world around us. We learn, we accept, and gradually, we lose our capacity for wonder. But some do not... the explorers, the seekers of truth. It is these pioneers who define the future of mankind."  
\- Lord Richard Croft  
**_

 _ **Northwest Border of Syria**_

Lara was now in the desert, getting transportation in a Jeep from a local guide.

"Hey," said the driver. "We're heading into a war zone, now. Are you sure about this?"

"...We're close," Lara nodded. "There should be an oasis in the canyon just ahead."

She checked her GPS to confirm it.

"You're wasting your time," The driver said. "There's nothing out here."

"Just keep driving, please," Lara asked him.

"It's your money," the driver scoffed.

As they drove, Lara spotted a helicopter fly by, and almost instantly, she got suspicious...especially when it started flying behind them.

"Something isn't right," she said.

"Uhh...it's probably the local militia," said the driver...but Lara noticed that he was darting his eyes, giving away that he was lying.

"...You told someone, didn't you?!" she asked.

"They...they paid better than you!" the driver answered.

"You bast-" Lara started, but then, the men in the helicopter started shooting at them!

The driver swerved to avoid the gunfire, but almost went off the road.  
"Damn, this road! Shit, they weren't supposed to shoot at us!"

"Get us out of here!" Lara told him.

"Shit! Shit!" the driver cursed as he tried to stay on the road, but then, the helicopter flew in front of them and began to shoot even more. Lara managed to duck down and avoid the bullets, but the driver was killed!

"Oh, no!" Lara cried as she tried to grab the wheel. "No! No!"

Too late. The Jeep soon veered off the road and crashed on its right side.

Lara ears were ringing and her head hurt, but she managed to crawl out of the Jeep's now broken back window.

She tried to make a run for it, but the Jeep exploded, sending her falling off a cliff. She tried to use her pickaxe to hang on, but she ended up falling down until she hit the dirt, hard.

'Just my luck,' she thought as she took a moment to regain her senses, then got back up to her feet.

"No turning back... it has to be here..." Still holding her head, she slowly walked along the cliff.

However, because she was still so dazed, she ended up stumbling. Luckily, she managed to lean against a rock to keep herself from falling down.

"There was something in Dad's research about this," she said as she pulled out Richard's tape recorder.

" **It was said the Prophet's Tomb was hidden in the cliffs above one of the forgotten cities,** " His voice said. " **Legend speaks of an oasis where the Prophet was laid to rest.** "

She put the tape recorder away and started to climb along the cliffs.

Some of the rocks crumbled as she made her way across, but she managed to leap up onto a ledge, and when she reached the top, she could see the entrance to a cave.

"Something's here," she whispered before she noticed something nearby. She went around the corner and found some sort of chest, which she opened to find a Cross...but it was broken in some parts.

"A religious icon," she said. "Detailed and inlaid with gems...it looks Byzantine. Perhaps 10th Century. It fits with the legend of the Prophet."

She pocketed the cross, then headed over to the cave entrance, which was almost too small to fit through.

Upon getting a closer look at it...the entrance almost didn't look like the entrance to a cave, but rather...a building. In fact, this almost looked like a doorway that had been blocked away by the buildup of sand.

"...Could this be it?" Lara asked as she managed to squeeze her way inside and waded through ankle-deep water. She brought out a glow stick to help her see the path better.

Once she made it out of the dark tunnel, she found a large open area with a stone slab in the middle.

Ancient Greek was written on the stone.

"Incredible...!" Lara whispered as she approached it. "It's some kind of marker..." She touched the side, where part of it had been broken off. "I can't quite make out the translation...but this word..." She then gasped and even smiled a little. "Prophet...! Dad was right!"

Looking around, she saw a mural drawn on the wall.

There was a man tending to someone lying in bed.

"Okay, he's shown here, performing healing miracles," said Lara. "Dad's notes mentioned this."

She ran over to a plaque on the wall, that had more Greek writing.

"These are the miracles of the Prophet of Constantinople," Lara read. "Unjustly murdered by order of...Trinity."

Then Lara spotted another mural, this one depicting the Prophet standing before some men in armor.

"It's the Prophet, speaking with a foreign army," she said. "He convinced them to lay down their weapons."

She spotted one more mural as she headed back to the monolith, so she went over to look at it.

The mural depicted the Prophet walking with some people.

"He led his followers through the desert... to the oasis..." she said.

Just then, Lara heard voices coming from somewhere up above.

"Still no sign of her. I don't think she survived the crash."

"All right, let's go. Konstantin wants to breach the tomb before sundown."

"They're after the tomb," Lara said. "I've got to find it before them!"

She went over to the monolith to read it,  
"My Greek is still a little rusty, but... it's pointing to something hidden, nearby."

She dug out some ancient coins from under the sand, then headed back to one of the murals.

Next to it was a wall with a large crack in it.

She dusted off the stone before one of the bricks cracked, and she could see light shining through it.

"A secret entrance...!" she realized before she used the pickaxe to tear the wall down...and on the other side was nothing short of remarkable: it looked like some sort of hidden village with a huge palace!

There white birds flying around, and a few small waterfalls around the landscape.

"It's amazing..." Lara said in awe. "If only Dad could have seen this... if only Owen..." She then shook her head.  
"No," she said. "I can't think about him, now..."

She ran to her left, over to some old columns that looked climbable.

As she made her way up...she spotted the same helicopter from earlier.

"Oh, no," she said, dreadfully. "They're already here. I've got to get inside!"

She made her way across a beam, but it collapsed halfway there, so she had to jump, and even then, the column collapsed!

"Oh, come on!" she complained before she jumped off the collapsing column to a nearby cliff.

She managed to land safely on the other side, clutching her left side as she did. She was obviously still in a bit of pain, but she kept going.

She jumped to another cliff, then jumped onto the palace wall and started climbing along it.

Eventually, she managed to make it to the top, and then she picked up her dad's tape recorder.

" **The Order of Trinity pursued the Prophet and his people, relentlessly, until finally confronting them in their hidden basis.** "

Lara soon made her way inside the building, using the glowstick to light her way.

It was a small space, but she was managing.  
"Thank God my boobs aren't super large, otherwise this would be impossible."

( **A/N: A little reference to the previous incarnations of Lara! XD)**

Halfway through, her glowstick started flickering till it went out.

"Damn it... come on!" She dropped it, got out a new one and cracked it.

She came face to face with a skeleton when the stick came on, startling her bit, but she kept moving.

Unfortunately, a swarm of large scorpions were crawling along the walls as she kept moving.

"Oh, god...!" she whispered. If there was one thing that scared her worse than anything else, it was scorpions. She tried her hardest not to scream when one fell on her shoulder and one even tried to crawl up her leg, but she kicked it off.

As she began to make her way through, she saw that the wall ahead of her was cracked, revealing light.

She crouched down and kicked the wall, making the crack bigger, then pushed it with her hands until she broke through.

She found herself deep within the Prophet's tomb, and there were skeletons littered all over...some of them wearing armor.

"There was a battle here..." Lara said. "Armed soldiers... against religious pilgrims... The Order of Trinity."

There was another mural on the wall, showing an army of soldiers killing people, and the Prophet lying on the ground, dead.

"The Prophet... slain by The Order of Trinity..." Lara said.

As she kept looking around, she found something nearby: a scroll. She soon picked it up and began to read it.  
" _My Son,_

 _The Order of Trinity has received word that the Prophet's followers are building a great tomb at an oasis outside of Beroea. But more upsetting... while we thought they were building the tomb for their Prophet, Trinity now believes he still lives._

 _We have learned he is preaching his heresy among the local citizens, drawing more to him daily with tales of how he conquered death. He is a liar and a heretic, claiming miracles that come only from the Divine._

 _You swore that he was dead. Have you failed us?_ "

"An ancient message from the Leaders of the Order of Trinity," said Lara. "They tracked the Prophet and his followers to this place."

She pocketed the scroll and headed down a tunnel filled with more skeletons.

When she came to the end, a spiky flail fell from the ceiling, but she stopped before it fell so it didn't hit her.

"Dammit," she cursed. "That was too close." She then began to shoot the flail away with her gun before she began to look for a different way out.

She ducked under a collapsed support beam and came into a dark tunnel.

Holding up her glowstick, she ran down it, then felt the whole place shake and heard the boom of an explosion.

"They're blasting their way in..." she realized. "Why do the bad guys always have no respect for these archeological sites?!"

Before she realized it, though, the floor crumbled and she fell right through, into a canal!

After coughing a bit, she noticed a wooden platform barely hanging from a flail above her.

She shot at it, causing the platform to fall into the water. Then she went over to a crack in the wall where more water was pouring out before she tore it open with her pickaxe.

"Let's hope this works," she said.

The water flooded in, filling up the canal more, and raising the platform up higher so she could reach the way out.

As she climbed up and made her way through a dark tunnel, something suddenly clamped around her ankles, causing her to cry out in pain. Realizing she had stepped into another booby trap, Lara brought out her gun and shot another flail with spears attached.

But she wasn't out of the woods yet, cause the tunnel got flooded with water.

It wasn't too long before she was engulfed in it, so she swam toward the surface as fast as she could!

She took a deep breath before she went under, and used her pickaxe to free her leg, then swam as fast as she could to the surface!

Once she made it up, she gasped for breath before she pulled herself out of the water, coughing up some as she did before she looked up at a set of stairs leading into a foggy area.

She ran up to the fog, where it dissipated, revealing the inside of the temple.

It was absolutely gorgeous...and there was even a part of it that looked like it was brand new: a shrine with a gilded roof.

"...Stunning...!" she whispered. "We made it, Dad."

Looking around, there was more water below her, and another cracked wall with some water leaking in.

Lara dove into the water before she swam to the other side of the lake to the wall where the water was leaking out of, then she used her pickaxe to pry that open, too, causing more water to flow in.

The water rose up, allowing her to float up to an area she couldn't reach before.

Then she swam to the other side of the lake and climbed up another wall that was lined up with various skulls, then she jumped onto a platform that opened a huge door, allowing more water to pour in.

The platform broke apart from her weight, so she fell into the water as it rose.

She swam over to the next ledge and climbed up another wall lined with skulls. She shuddered, trying not to think that there might be scorpions scurrying about inside. She shimmied along till she came a ledge to climb onto. She went along it, but then the floor started to give way, so she jumped forward before it collapsed. She checked behind her to see the floor had collapsed into a pitfall with spikes.

"Too close," she sighed. "Thank God Team Rocket never adds spikes to their pit-traps."

 **(A/N: HA, Pokémon reference! XD)**

Lara eventually found another artifact: a wooden cross...and it looked like it had been made by a child.

"Another religious symbol," she said as she looked it over, "But...this one is...simple and handmade. The Prophet must have drawn followers from every walk of life."

She pocketed it, then heard another explosion, along with more voices coming from above.

"That's it! We're almost through!"

"All right, set the final charges... prepare to breach!"

"Damn, they're almost inside," Lara cursed.

Lara kept climbing whatever ledge she could get to, determination filling her body.

Eventually, she made it to the shrine, where there was the tomb The Prophet was supposed to be buried in.

Lara walked over to it, "Found you!"

She pushed the lid off with every bit of strength she had, but the inside of the tomb was...

"Empty?!" Lara gasped. "It's empty! No, no! What did I miss?"

She paced about, trying to think, when suddenly...

"Hey! It's down here!"

Lara gasped as she looked up and saw several men with guns, jumping down on ropes. Without wasting a second, they hid before they could spot her.

The men slid down, followed by a man with grayish blonde hair, and a squiggly-shaped scar on his left cheek.

"Set the charges!" The man ordered. He was clearly the one in charge.

Some of the men that were up near the ceiling placed explosives on some of the support columns.

The commander was handed a detonator by one of his soldiers as he walked towards the tomb, flanked by two of his soldiers.

"The Prophet's tomb," the commander said. "After all this time."

"And the artifact?" One of the soldiers asked.

"Inside," the commander answered. "God willing." He took off his left glove, revealing a bullet wound in his palm as he rubbed the tomb.  
"Open it. Carefully."

The men nodded their heads before they approached the coffin and opened it...only for Lara to jump out, pointing her pistol at them!

"Who the hell are you?!" she asked.

"...You're a smart woman," said the strange man as he ushered his soldiers to put down their guns. "I suspect you already know."

"Trinity," Lara concluded as the man walked over to stand directly in front of her, making her pistol press against his armored chest.

"Where is the artifact?" he asked.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she answered.

"Don't play games with me," The man barked. "You led us to this place."

Lara sighed and brought her gun away from his chest,  
"Look, it was empty when I got here. There was no body, and definitely no artifact."

The man glared at her, suspiciously, and at first, as he turned around, it looked like he believed her...but then he faced her again, this time holding a knife. That's when Lara held up something that made them all freeze: the remote detonator for the charges!

"GET DOWN!" the man shouted as he and his men jumped away while Lara jumped back into the coffin, pressing the button as she did...causing the whole place to explode and come crashing down on her!

She then front-flipped out of the coffin and ducked behind it, then shot two men who were still there in the head.

Once they were down, she sprinted away as quickly as she could.

When one of the men tried to ambush her, he only ended up getting crushed by the rocks while Lara kept running.

"Move, dammit! MOVE!" she shouted at herself as she continued to run, but then the floor gave out beneath her feet, causing her to slide down before she hit solid ground. This didn't stop her, however, and she began to run faster when she saw the outside.

"Almost...there!" she cried as water came bursting out from the walls!

She rushed towards the light at the end of the tunnel **(And NO, I don't mean heaven!)** , dodging rocks falling from the ceiling and jumping over the collapsed floor at the end.

She made it back into the sunlight, but she was at a cliff so she couldn't jump or run further, and the water was still coming.

So she jumped back against one of the column walls as the water came rushing out, allowing her to avoid it.

As she did, she noticed something on the ground: a carving of that same cross from earlier.

"...What is this?" she asked before she looked up at the sky.

* * *

 **Here's the first chapter!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	3. Chapter 2: Siberian Mountain Climb

**Here's the next chapter!**

 **archangel of vengeance: Yes, he will be. Just wait.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Siberian Mountain Climb**

 _ **CROFT MANOR**_

 _ **SURREY, ENGLAND**_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _A few days later_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara was in her father's old office, sitting on the floor in front of his desk, surrounded by sheets of paper and typing on a laptop.

Suddenly, she heard the door opening, causing her to gasp as she looked up...only to see a man walk in. He had something of a mini-afro and a shaggy beard, but right away, she knew who it was.

"Jonah!" she exclaimed, happily.

"Lara!" Jonah greeted back.

Lara got up and hugged him, "There's so much I need to tell you, I don't-"

Jonah finished hugging her and pulled away, "Did you find the Prophet's tomb?"

"Yes, but I was followed," she answered, walking over to her papers.

"What?" Jonah asked worriedly. "By who?"

"They call themselves Trinity," Lara said. "They tried to kill me."

"What the hell is going on here?" Jonah asked. "You're starting to scare me."

Lara took one paper and walked over to a bookshelf,  
"The tomb was empty, but I think they were looking for the Divine Source."

"The artifact your father was after?" Jonah asked.

"There's more," Lara handed him the paper in her hand, which had a picture of the cross symbol she saw.  
"I found this symbol in the tomb. I knew I'd seen it before. It was driving me insane!" She went over to another bookshelf.  
"That's when it hit me. I saw it here, in one of Dad's books."

She opened a book and turned several pages before she stopped on one.  
"Listen to this," she told Jonah before she began reading. "The lost city of Kitezh. Said to disappeared in Siberia sometime in the 12th century. Legend says that on the eve of the invasion by the Mongol horde, it sunk beneath a lake!"

"What does this have to do with the Prophet's artifact?" asked Jonah.

Lara put the book on the desk and gestured to the picture,  
"The same symbol!"

It's true; the page she had turned to had the same cross on it.

Jonah put the paper down and started laughing lightly, pacing around,  
"Lara..."

"If the Divine Source is hidden in the ruins Kitezh, waiting to be found, then I have to go," Lara insisted.

"To Siberia?" Jonah questioned. "Are you kidding me?"

"Just think," Lara tried to explain. "If this thing could really unlock the secret of immortality, it... it would change everything. Sickness, suffering, death... gone!"

"Are you listening to yourself?" Jonah questioned.

Lara sighed. "Jonah, we've been through so much together. You know there's more out there - this could be real!"

"I don't care if it's real!" Jonah exclaimed. "I've lost too many friends. I don't wanna lose you too."

"Dad never made the connection to Kitezh," Lara continued. "He gave up everything for this."

"Including you!" Jonah reminded her. "Stop blaming yourself for what happened. He made his own bed."

He then went to leave.

"I can't give up on him," Lara said. "Not now. It's all I have!"

Jonah turned around sharply, "NO IT ISN'T! If you stayed still for five minutes, maybe you'd see that! You're making the same mistakes he did; giving up everything! You gave up Owen for this! The fact that you can't see past this whole thing to what you have right in front of you is why he left!"

Hearing Owen's name caused Lara to tense up...and at first, it seemed like Jonah got through to her...but then she turned away.

"...Get out," she said. "NOW."

There was a pause before Lara heard Jonah's footsteps recede...followed by the door slamming. As Lara leaned against her desk...she looked up at a picture of her and Owen, together, at the beach. They were both smiling at the camera and Owen was giving her bunny ears. In her frustration, she grabbed the picture and threw it against the floor, causing the glass to shatter before she fell to her knees.

"Why...?" she sobbed. "Why did you leave me?! First Mom, then Dad, now you... I loved you so much... Hell, I still do!"

Then, she looked over to her father's journal before she picked it up and hugged it as if it were her lifeline.

She wanted to make things right...she really did...but she was in too deep, now.

Then she heard some footsteps slowly approaching her from the left.

"Jonah?" She questioned.

Not receiving an answer, and feeling a gun on her, she grabbed a lamp from the floor and swung it behind her, hitting a man who had a gun.

She had hit his gun away when he fired, so his shot missed her.

The mysterious thug soon stood back up and tried to grab her by the collar of her jacket, but Lara grabbed him and slammed his head against the desk before she got kicked to the floor. The man tried to regain his senses while Lara ran for the stool which she tried to use to knock him out with, but he shattered the legs before she could do so.

He backhanded her in the face, making her fall to the floor. She tried to crawl for his gun, but her grabbed her leg and pulled her back, then she kicked him and crawled for the gun again, only to be pulled back again.

She backhanded him in the face, then he grabbed her by her throat, lifted her up and choke-slammed her to the floor, got on top of her and began to really choke her.

Just as it looked like Lara was about to pass out, the door opened again.

"Hey, Lara," he said. "About what I said-" He then gasped when he saw the thug trying to choke Lara. "Holy shit!" He then grabbed a nearby candelabra, just when Lara used the book she had to hit the man in the face, forcing him to let go.

The man rolled back to his feet, grabbed the book with the cross and ran towards the window.

Lara grabbed the gun and pointed it at him, "Stop!" Which the man did, and he looked at her. "Drop the book!"

The man looked between her and Jonah, looked back at the window and clutched the book closer,  
"You can't stop us!"

He jumped out the window, breaking it.

Lara tried to shoot him, but she was too late, and when she and Jonah looked out the window, they saw he had already disappeared, causing Lara to sigh in disappointment and frustration.

"Shit, Lara," cursed Jonah. "What are we gonna do?"

"I led them to it Jonah," Lara said. "If the Divine Source is real, we've got to find it first."

Jonah nodded, "Siberia it is, then."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 _ **SIBERIA**_

All around there was wind and blinding snow. In the midst of the Siberian mountains, there was a base camp with pitched up tents and sled dogs. Lara stood at the edge of a cliff, staring at a mountain peak far in the distance.

She had this look in her eyes...one that did not hold depression or desperation. No. These eyes...held renewed resolve.

Jonah came up next to her, panting a bit,  
"The others... they're done. No amount of money is gonna get them through those mountains."

"The lost city is up there, somewhere," Lara said.

"That's gonna be one hell of a climb," Jonah stated.

"I'm not turning back," Lara told him.

"I know," he replied. As he said that, he gave her a soft smile, which caused her to smile back.

At least she still had someone she could count on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara was using two pickaxes to climb up a wall of ice.

"You're almost there!" Jonah called from up above. "Wait until you see this view, Lara!"

Lara grunted as she kept climbing, making sure she had some good footing before Jonah reached down toward her.

"Take my hand!" he said, allowing her to grab it so he could pull her up...and when he did, Lara could see that they were nearly at the peak of the mountain with the sun shining brightly behind it.

"...Thanks," she said, taking a moment to take in the view. "...Look at this...!"

"It's amazing," said Jonah, "But that snow coming off the peaks is a bad sign."

They walked along the mountain path they were on, Lara rubbing herself because of the cold.

"The trail leads up the mountain," said Lara. "We'll have a better view of the valley from beyond the summit!"

"All right," Jonah said. "Let's take it easy here."

As they continued to make their way to the summit, the wind started blowing harshly.

"This wind is crazy!" Jonah shouted as he and Lara braced themselves.

"We just have to keep moving!" Lara replied as the wind settled...for now.

"Hey!" Jonah said. "Even if we don't find anything up there...your dad would be proud!"

"I know," she replied. "But I have a good feeling about this."

As they continued walking, the wind started getting rougher and part of the trail suddenly collapsed and Lara nearly slipped.

"Oh, shit!" she cursed as she regained her balance.

"Are you okay?!" asked Jonah, worriedly.

"Lost my footing, but I'm fine!" she said.

But as soon as she started walking on the trail again, there as a loud rumble, and the trail soon fell apart!

"Oh, shit!" Jonah cursed. "LARA!"

"AAAAAAAAAHH!" Lara screamed as she fell, trying to find something to grab onto. Thankfully, she had her pickaxe to latch onto the ice before she fell over the edge. She panted from the rush of terror as she glanced down and saw the sharp rocks below.

If she hadn't used her pickaxe in time, she would've definitely been impaled.

"Damn, too close," she sighed in relief.

"Lara, are you alright?!" Jonah called.

"Jonah!" she called back. "I'm here!"

"I'll climb down there and get you!" he yelled.

"No, it's too dangerous!" she told him. "I can climb back up!"

"Are you sure?!" he asked.

"Just stay put!" she told him.

Soon, she began to climb around the icy cliffs with her two pickaxes, leaping across walls of ice and snow until she finally managed to get to where Jonah was waiting.

"I need to jump across!" she called out.

"Okay!" Jonah called back as he held out his hand to her. "Just grab my hand!"

Mentally counting down from 3 to 1, Lara jumped off the cliff and toward Jonah, who managed to catch her.

"Gotcha!" he said, then he pulled up. "Shit Lara! You're gonna give me a heart attack. Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said, then pulled him to his feet. "Come on."

Soon, the two trekked onward, bracing themselves against the wind as they reached the entrance to a cave.

"Looks like we gotta go through," said Jonah as he walked inside.  
He chuckled a bit, "Not bad. If the weather turns bad, we can hole up in this cave. Do you really think we'll find this lost city?"

Lara walked inside and lit a flare, "I know this is a long shot, but that old tracker said he saw ruins up in these mountains."

Jonah chuckled, "Well, if I was going to hide a lost city, this might be the kind of godforsaken place I'd do it."

"I just hope Trinity hasn't beaten us to it," Lara said.

As the two made it outside, the wind started getting even harsher.

"Storm's getting closer!" Jonah said. "We got a couple hours at most!"

"Should be enough time," Lara said. "We're almost at the top."

As Lara trudged through some deep snow, she reached the edge of a cliff before she stared up at the summit, pulling her hood down.

"What do you think?" asked Jonah.

"...We're close to something, Jonah," said Lara. "I can feel it. Just this last stretch to the top."

"All right," he said. "Let's see what's up there."

Soon, Jonah hooked up a rope to himself and Lara, then they began to shift alongside the wall.

"Feels pretty solid up here," he said, "But keep close to the wall."

"Okay," she replied, then shimmied over to a wall of ice. "Looks like we climb from here."

"Keep your eyes open for falling ice," said Jonah.

"Right," Lara replied. "You ready?"

Jonah gave a nod of his head, and Lara soon jumped onto the ice with her pickaxes and climbed up. Jonah followed not long after.

"Whoa," he yelped. "There's a lot of loose ice up here."

"Let's take it slow and steady," Lara said. "Just stay with me."

As they continued climbing, a huge chunk of ice fell from above, and was coming towards them!

"LOOK OUT!" Jonah shouted.

Luckily, the chunk of ice only hit part of the wall above Lara and the momentum knocked it away from hitting her and Jonah!

"Oh shit!" she yelped.

"That was too close!" Jonah said.

They continued climbing, with Lara jumping across the wall, but when she dug her pickaxe into one part, the wall started to crack and crumble!

"Oh, no!" she cried. "Oh, no, no, no!"

The ice fell apart, preventing them from moving forward without jumped to the next wall of ice.

"Jonah, hold on!" Lara yelled.

"Shit!" Jonah cursed. "I'm gonna dig in. Can you make it across?"

"I can make it!" she said.

Soon, she made the leap, and at first, it looked like she wasn't going to make it...but she managed to cling onto the ice with her pickaxe.

"Holy shit!" cursed Jonah. "I don't think I'm gonna be able to make that jump!"

"Just stay there!" Lara told him. "I'll anchor a line for you at the top!"

"All right," Jonah replied. "I'll give you some slack!"

Soon, Lara began to make her way up to the peak.

"Almost there, Lara!" Jonah said. "You got it!"

Halfway at the peak, Lara looked up and gasped upon seeing the enormous storm clouds...and they were coming in, fast.

Even worse, she was going to have to jump up to reach the next wall of ice.

Steeling her nerves, Lara leaped up and clung to the ice with her pickaxe.

She then managed to climb to the top, and saw some ruins in the distance.  
"Jonah, we made it! I see the ruins!"

But then she almost slipped when the wind kicked up more.

She looked up and gasped upon seeing the storm clouds already upon her with lightning bolts flashing from it!

"Oh, god...!" she whispered in horror.

"LARA!" Jonah shouted...just as the lightning struck and caused Lara to fall down!

Luckily, she still had a rope connecting her to Jonah, to prevent her from falling to her death.

But the momentum of falling made her hit the mountain wall, and her ears started ringing.

"Oh shit!" Jonah cursed. "Lara! Lara, can you hear me?!"

It took a moment, but Lara managed to regain her senses.  
"...Yeah..." she answered while holding her head.

"I'm going to pull you back up!" Or at least he tried. "Oh fuck!"

Lara looked around and spotted another wall of ice further away.  
"Over there! Swing me to the other side!"

"Okay, here goes!" Jonah began to help her swing back and forth.

Soon, he swung her to the ice wall, and she managed to grab on, only for the ice to shatter!

"Oh, fuck!" Jonah cursed. "No! No!"

After a couple more swings, she managed to get a hold of the ice and started climbing again.

"Climb! CLIMB!" Jonah shouted as Lara kept climbing while the storm practically shook the mountains...and when she reached the top, Lara gasped in horror, because an avalanche was headed right for her!

"Oh shit!" Jonah cursed. "Move, god dammit!"

"Go back, Jonah!" Lara yelled. "Get to shelter!"

She then ran as fast as she could to some wooden boards set up like a platform on the mountain.

She tried to run to an old wrecked plane, but the wind and snow made it hard to run and see. She managed to jump onto an old pole before she ziplined down the mountain as a huge tidal wave of snow came racing toward her, then she ended up crashing through another wall of ice before sliding down a cliff. She screamed as she tried to hold on as best she could until she used her pickaxe to keep herself from falling.

However, she knew she couldn't hang on forever, so she jumped to the nearest wall of ice and climbed up that one until she pulled herself over the ledge, then began to run as the cliffs started falling apart!

Once she came to the last of the collapsing cliffs, she had to jump to another wall of ice.

She managed to make it, but she wasn't high enough to avoid getting hit by the avalanche.

It swept her away down the mountain, it was a miracle that she didn't die.

* * *

 **In case anyone's wondering; Blood Ties is gonna be a separate story.**

 **Read and review, please.**


	4. Chapter 3: Bear Attack

**Last chapter for the night.**

 **Like the last story; Fang and I did all the whole story in advance. So, all I have to do is separate it into chapters and fix any mistakes.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

After what seemed like hours, Lara managed to pull herself out of the snow, gasping for breath. She was freezing...she was in shock...but she was alive.

However...she found herself standing in the middle of a snowy forest. That's when she heard Jonah's voice on her walkie-talkie.  
" **Lara? Are you there? I made it to shelter.** "

Lara inwardly sighed in relief. At least Jonah was alive, something she was thankful...and he was probably doing a whole lot better than she was, right now.

"Jonah...?" she asked in a shaky voice, but she didn't get a reply. "...Jonah...if you can hear me...g-go back...don't try to find me. ...I need to do this alone... Got to find shelter..."

She trudged slowly through the deep snow, past all the wrecked trees as fast as she could.  
"...I wish Owen and the wolves were here..."

As the wind howled and Lara kept moving, she could feel her body shivering and seizing up.

"Come on...keep moving...!" she told herself, knowing that if she stopped, she'd certainly freeze to death. "Come on...you can do this...move...!"

Eventually, she came upon an abandoned campground.

"An old camp..." she said as she stumbled up to it...only to find the campfire had been snowed over. She couldn't possibly use the wood here for kindling.  
"Okay... okay... got to start a fire..."

She trekked a little bit away from the camp to find something to use.

She found two small trees to use for wood,  
"Dry enough to burn... I hope..."

She also found a dead deer, with it's guts hanging out,  
"Fresh kill... no meat but... maybe something else I can use..."

As she was about to skin it...she saw shadows run by, followed by snarling, which caused her to gasp. Not long after, eerie howls began to fill the air.

Not wanting to end up a wolf pack's meal, she got up and stumbled back to the camp. The wind began to bl ow even harder, almost pushing her back.

"Move, dammit...!" Lara cursed at herself as she pushed herself against the wind...and luckily for her, she managed to make it back to the camp, where she began to build a fire and shelter.

By then, night had fallen...but at least now, Lara was warm enough to actually move better.

As she sat down, her radio crackled out some static.

She got it out to adjust the frequency and listen better.

Then a deep male voice spoke from it, which she recognized as the Trinity Commander she encountered in Syria.  
" **...Men are scouring the ruins in the mountains. If the artifact is here, we'll find it.** "

" **And what of the remnants?** " A second male voice asked. Lara didn't recognize this voice.

" **They continue to resist us, but we'll have the situation in hand soon enough,** " the Commander replied.

" **Good,** " the mystery man said. " **Trinity has faith in you.** "

"Trinity..." Lara whispered to herself.

Realizing the situation at hand...Lara picked up a curved piece of wood and then tied a long, tight string onto it, creating an old-fashioned longbow. However, she knew she had to make it stronger, but luckily, she gathered up some materials on her way, such as straps of leather to make the bow a bit more resilient.

'I wish this pain wasn't so familiar,' she thought to herself. 'Like looking an old enemy in the eye. It wants to take me down. It wants me to lay down and die...but I won't. I can't. There's something here. There must be, or Trinity wouldn't be in this snowy hell...I just hope that Jonah is okay...that he made it back. I just couldn't risk losing him...not again. The pain of losing him...that would be too much to bear. It makes me a little glad that Owen and the wolves aren't here. If I lost them...'

Getting her thoughts under control, she got up and left the campsite.

"...This is my path...and mine alone," she said as she went into the forest, using only a glow stick to light her way. However...she didn't realize she was being followed.

She cracked a glowstick as she headed into the forest.

She could hear the wind blowing, softly, so at least it wasn't as harsh as before, but she could also hear barking in the distance...and this did not belong to any wild dog. The wolves were still nearby, and she was on their turf, now.

One false step and they would be on top of her before she knew it.

As she travelled through the forest, she found a few relics and scrolls of events from long ago.

Then, in the distance, she saw the red glow of from a flare. So she decided to investigate.

As she got closer to the flare, she heard what sounded like a radio.

" **Survey team, this is Overwatch. Please respond,** " said someone on the walkie-talkie, which Lara picked up. " **Survey team, please respond. We got some...interference on the last transmission.** "

Just then, Lara looked up, only to gasp in horror...for she found herself face to face with a huge grizzly bear!

The bear roared and took a swing at her with its paw, but she dodged it and sprinted away.

The bear gave chase as she found ways to jump over the deep snow so she wouldn't get slowed down.

She crawled under a pile of branches, but the bear was still in hot pursuit of her, trying to grab her with its large claws, but she stabbed it with her pickaxe to try and keep it at bay. However, the bear was persistent. No matter how many times she slashed at its face and even stabbed out one of its eyes, it still tried to go after her!

So she crawled out of the branches to continue running, but she came to a cliff.

The bear tore through the branches and came after her again, but she dodged its attack and stabbed it in the head with her pickaxe.

Still, the bear swished its head around, throwing Lara off and over the cliff.

Luckily, the fall wasn't long, but it was still painful.

She tried her hardest to stay awake...but she inevitably blacked out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 _It was just another day in Croft Manor. Lord Richard Croft was busy with his recent discovery when suddenly, his 10-year-old daughter, Lara, came in through the window, causing him to chuckle as he walked up to her._

 _"Lara," he said. "Still refusing to use the door, I see."_

 _"But it's faster this way, Dad," Lara said._

 _Richard picked her up and hugged her, "Come here, you little monkey."_

 _"Are you going on another adventure?" Lara asked._

 _"Yes," Richard replied. "My greatest one yet."_

 _"Well, I've decided that I should be your assistant," Lara told him._

 _"Oh, have you?" Richard chuckled. "Well, there's no one I'd rather have by my side. But this business... it's too dangerous. ...Lara, listen to me. Someday you're going to make such a mark on this world. You're going to make me so proud." The phone on his desk started ringing. "Give me a moment, darling. I need to take this."_

 _He then picked up the phone._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _End Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara groaned as she opened her eyes, her body feeling a bit numb. She was bleeding from the wounds the bear gave her, but she knew she couldn't lie there.

For all she knew, the bear might come back and try to eat her.

Wincing in pain, she managed to stand up and started moving through the snow.  
"Got to bind this wound..."

Soon, she found some old, dead leaves on a bush.

"Those leaves should stem the bleeding," she said as she pulled some of them off and pressed them to her wound. "Now...I've got to find some kind of bandage."

She walked further and saw along the mountain in the distance was some kind of War Installation.  
"An abandoned Cold War installation... What the hell is Trinity doing down there?"

She then found a box that had some rags in it,  
"Good enough."

As Lara looked up, she saw more ruins up ahead in the distance.

"More Mongol ruins," she said. "It looks like the path goes all the way through. Got to get past that bear."

She went back and climbed up a cliff and went through a small tunnel, where she found some deathcap mushrooms.  
"I can use these to make a poison."

She picked the mushrooms and headed back into the forest.

After searching around the abandoned encampment and looking inside a cave, she found several more.

Then she found some more cloth and headed back to her camp to make some poison arrows.

Once she was finished, she began to feel her adrenaline leave her.

"Need to rest," she whispered. "So cold...so tired..."

Soon, she sat underneath her shelter and prepared to drift off to sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 _10 year old Lara walked into her father's office, hearing him arguing with someone on the phone._

 _"No, you listen to me; this discovery is too important. ...I don't give a damn about my reputation! ...Don't you dare threaten me! After everything I've done! Hello? Hello?!"_

 _He put the phone back, angrily._

 _"Dad, what's happening?" Lara asked, showing herself._

 _"They're fools!" Richard yelled, looking at a newspaper on his desk that had his picture on it. The headline read " **DISGRACED! RENOWNED HISTORIAN'S WILD CLAIMS DEBUNKED** "._

 _"You're scaring me," Lara cried._

 _"I'm close, Lara..." Richard told her. "Close to something important. Someday, you'll understand."_

 _"I don't want to understand!" Lara yelled. "I just want you to stop. Be my Dad again!"_

 _With that, she ran off._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _End Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suddenly, Lara gasped as she awoke to the sound of a gunshot in the distance, causing her to look outside. Out in the forest, a man and a woman were seen, running away from some armed men.

"Sofia! Keep moving!" the man urged as he and the woman, Sofia, kept running.

One of the men chasing them fired his rifle, hitting Sofia's companion in the shoulder, making him collapse in the snow.

Sofia stopped running, drawing her bow and arrow. Shot two of the guys chasing them, but when she went to draw another one, she discovered she was out of arrows.

Three more thugs caught up, one of them standing over Sofia's friend. Sofia looked at him in desperation, but he shook his head at her, signaling her not to do anything. She could only watch as one of the thug's shot her friend in the head.

She glared at them with hate and ran off.

"Run her down!" the guy who shot the man ordered the other two, so they chased after her. The guy looked to his left, spotting smoke and the familiar glow of a fire, so he went over to investigate.

As for the two men chasing after Sofia; as they started gaining on her, they suddenly collapsed in the snow, bullet holes in their foreheads.

Sofia looked at them in shock,  
'Sniper?' But she hadn't even heard the sound of a sniper rifle.

She looked around at the trees until she spotted someone.

Judging by the person's stature, it was a man. He was wearing a black ski-mask and goggles, a light-grey coat for camouflage in the snow. He was certainly dressed for a cold environment. He was holding a Nemesis Arms Vanquish sniper rifle with a silencer.

The mysterious man lowered the rifle and signaled for Sofia to go.

Realizing he was a friend, Sofia got up and ran away as fast as she could.

Meanwhile, the last thug checked the campsite.

He noticed the small shelter made out of sticks and fired a few shots from his pistol at it.

When he looked inside, he saw that there was no one in there, so he began to look around.

Lara was up in a tree, watching him,  
'You'd kill someone out here, even if they were sleeping, not even bothering you?! Asshole!'

" **All teams report in,** " A male voice said from the guy's radio. " **What's the situation? Over.** "

"We found another camp up here," the guy said. "Fire was still warm."

Lara jumped from the branch and landed on top of the guy, stabbing him in the head with her pickaxe.

She then looted him for anything she could use and hid in some bushes as another thug approached.

"Command, we're fanning out to pick up the trail," said the thug as he got closer to Lara.

" **Roger that,** " answered a voice on his walkie-talkie, " **But it looks like they've retreated. Primary objective is to find the missing survey team.** "

Just then, Lara leaped out and stabbed the man in the head.

She pulled his body into the bushes him, looted him and headed back into the forest.

Only now, the place was crawling with Trinity thugs.

Lara had to be smart here. One false step, and she would be dead.

Silently, she climbed up a tree and jumped from branch to branch. She shot a few of the thugs in the head with arrows, making sure they were isolated from their buddies so as to not alert them.

The last two were at a small camp they'd set up at the cliff that led to the bear's cave.

Lara knocked two arrows onto her bow, aimed carefully and fired, successfully hitting them both in the head.

In an encampment, obviously belonging to Trinity, Lara found several things, like tents, a fire pit, and a small table with a laptop and a tape recorder on it. Naturally curious, but still keeping a lookout, Lara picked up the recorder and pressed the Play button.

" ** _We're gearing up. I was on the first flight to Siberia to secure the old Soviet installation. Now more are arriving every minute. Konstantin gave a speech to the new boots, and I stayed in the back to watch. Love hearing him speak, never gets old. I was never much for believing, but it was just words before. This is something more. It's truth._**

 ** _I was broken once, but Trinity is making us whole again, giving us a purpose. A new world awaits. Even those who don't believe will have a part to play._** "

'One of the soldier's private journals,' Lara thought.

After pocketing the tape, she climbed up a tree and jumped up the cliff that led to the bear's cave.

As she ran in the direction of it, she heard the bear roaring from inside,  
"Damn, it's still there. *deep breath* Alright Yogi, wait till you see what I've got for you."

Soon, after she collected a few materials and some arrows lying around...she was ready to face the beast.

Lara soon ventured inside the cave, trying to look for the bear. However, the space was so small, she had to duck her down to fit.

"Damn," she cursed. "Too cramped in here to fight..." She then gasped silently when she saw the bear, up ahead. Its head was bleeding in some places, but it looked like it was still alive.

"...I'll have to draw it out," whispered Lara as she shot an arrow, which exploded into a green fog that caused the bear to roar in pain, then she turned and ran outside.

Once outside, she knocked another arrow and aimed at the cave entrance.

Just as the bear came out, she fired it, which exploded into more green smoke.

While the bear was stunned, she fired three arrows at it before it came after her again.

Whenever it got close enough, Lara would stab it in the side or its face with her pickaxe before she ran to get some distance, and when she got the chance, she got a really good hit in its neck. However, the bear was not willing to give up, just yet. It stood up on it's hind paws and then swatted at Lara with its sharp claws, and it actually managed to land a good hit on her, causing her to hit a tree.

Lara prepared to get back up when she realized that she dropped her bow when the bit hit her, but when she went to grab it, the bear bit her leg, causing her to scream in pain as it began to drag her back into the cave...intending to eat her alive.

"NO!" Lara cried as she struggled. "LET GO, DAMN YOU!"

But then, just as it seemed that this was the end for Lara Croft, something dashed out from the trees and lunged at the bear, who roared as it felt razor-sharp fangs in its muzzle. In its pain, it ended up letting go of Lara, who looked up to see that the bear was being attacked by a large wolf...and when Lara saw those golden yellow eyes, she realized it wasn't just any wolf.

"TSUME!"" she exclaimed, joyfully.

Tsume jumped off the bear and growled viciously, standing protectively in front of Lara before the bear tried to swipe at him. However, Tsume proved to be too fast and bit the bear in the neck...right down on its jugular artery before he ripped it open, causing blood to come pouring out onto the snow before the beast collapsed.

Tsume stood upon the bear's dead body, panting from the heat of battle and his mouth smeared with blood, but then he threw his head up and let out a triumphant howl!

Unable to help herself, Lara howled as well, then ran over to embrace the wolf.  
"Oh Tsume, I've missed you~!" she cried happily.

Tsume barked happily as he smothered Lara's face with licks, causing her to laugh...but...even while she was laughing, she had tears in her eyes.

"...I missed you, so much...!" she said, causing Tsume to whimper as he laid his head down on her lap, causing her to smile and kiss his head.  
"Is Owen here?" she asked, hopefully.

Tsume lowered his head, in sadness.

Lara knew that meant 'no',  
"Oh..."

She then sighed before she smiled and pet him on the head.

"Well, that's all right," she said. "At least you came and saved me." She then hugged him. "Thank you, Tsume."

Then she cut off some of the bear's skin to use for later.

Tsume ran into the bear's cave, so Lara followed after him.

There were more mushrooms inside that she could use, and a few boxes with supplies.

"Good boy," she praised, but then grunted in pain from the bite wound she got from the bear, causing her to sit down on a rock.

She got out some of the leaves and cloth she'd collected to bandage herself.

Then she rested a bit so that the pain would at least subside a little while Tsume kept a lookout for anything suspicious.

But before that, he brought her a scroll that he'd found in a corner of the cave.

"Good boy, Tsume," she said as she took it while he sat down.

" _The fugitive Prophet has crossed out of the Empire, and now turns North._

 _I am now in unfamiliar territory. The order of Trinity was clear: I am to pursue the False Prophet and his adherents to the ends of the earth and wash away his heresy, but I believed I could overtake him months ago. Still, he eludes me._

 _He crosses Khazar land, and across the Caucasus Mountains. Here I am at a disadvantage. I speak a dozen tongues of the Empire, but in the hinterlands, I am often left to communicate with little more than a sword. The Prophet, it seems, speaks every language, as if he were born to them._ "

"The Tracker followed the Prophet into unfamiliar lands..." Lara speculated.

She then noticed a small light coming through one of the far walls, so went over to check.

She dug through the wall with her pickaxe till it broke apart, leading into a glacial cavern.

Tsume soon led the way while Lara followed, being careful not to slip on the ice.

They slid down a steep slope and ducked down to move through a narrow tunnel.

This brought them to a dead-end, except for swimming through some water.

"Shit," Lara cursed. "That's going to be cold."

Tsume just jumped right in and swam through the water, but not without looking at Lara, gesturing her to follow.

"Guess I have no choice," said Lara as she soon took the plunge. At least her coat provided some insulation.

She swam as quickly as she could through the freezing water, diving under a few obstructions till she came to a campsite.

"Thank God," she sighed in relief.

Soon, she and Tsume sat before the fire to warm themselves up. During this time, Lara used the materials she found to add a few upgrades to her bow.

Lara looked up and checked out the path up ahead before she sighed. There were too many cliffs and gaps that even Tsume couldn't jump over. As much as she hated it, it seemed that she had to go on her own from here.

"Tsume," she said to the wolf. "Do you think you can find your own way out?"

Tsume whimpered, not wanting to leave Lara's side after he just found her again.

Lara smiled and petted him,  
"I know, but I'll be okay. And we'll find each other again."

She kissed his nose, then jumped to the next cliff, where she saw something jaw-dropping...

A galleon ship, stuck in the ice!

"A Byzantine war galley?" Lara asked as she stared at in awe. "How the hell did it get down here?"

* * *

 **Tsume's back! But who's the guy in the ski-mask that saved Sophia?**

 **Read and review, please!**


	5. Chapter 4: Soviet Installation

**And, we're back!**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Soviet Installation**

Lara jumped to a climbable wall of ice and went up it.

She ran inside a small tunnel that had a wooden walkway built into the ice. It looked like it was built haphazardly.

"Hmm... it's Mongolian," Lara stated. "They passed through here... I must be close to the old city."

Soon, Lara climbed up onto another wall of ice before she jumped up onto the galley by using the mast as a balance beam.

First thing she found when she got on the ship was a scroll lying next to a centuries old corpse.

Taking a look at the scroll:  
" _The Maria Adula is trapped. The ice gave way, her spine snapped in two._

 _No matter._

 _While I hoped to wield her cannons against the False Prophet, we will continue on foot. I have six of the Order of Trinity's best and we have been stockpiling food and supplies while the sailors starved. They do not know it yet, but they will give their life for the cause. My men and I will find our way out of these icy caves and continue on foot._

 _Before the ship was swallowed by the ice, to the south, we heard music. That will be our first stop. But first I must rest. The cold has sunk into my bones, and I am drowsy. Just a little sleep..._ "

'A Knight of the Order of Trinity pursues the Prophet, undaunted by the obstacles...' Lara thought.

Deciding this would be all she would find, Lara pocketed the scroll before she went over to some sort of wench mechanism and a counterweight. That gave her an idea. Using her pickaxe, she managed to turn the gears and lowered the counterweight before she climbed up onto the mast and jumped onto it, and the added momentum caused it to hit a wall of ice!

It broke the ice off the wall and the counterweight, before it lowered down.

She jumped down and climbed up the now climbable wall.

Soon, she reached the top and looked around some more until she saw a crank and pulley system.

"That vessel," she said. "Must be some way around here to move it..."

There was another mechanism, so she used her pickaxe to turn it.

It lowered the other counterweight down to the lower level.

Once it was lowered enough, Lara made her way over to the counterweight before it could go back up again and jumped onto it, causing it to crash into another ice shelf and reveal another climbable wall.

"Got it!" she exclaimed. "Now to see what's up there."

She climbed up the ice and parts of the ship that were sticking out.

When she reached the top and stopped to catch her breath...she looked up and gasped in awe, for she had found a massive amount of treasure!

"Look at all this," Lara said in awe. "Why were they carrying so much wealth with them?"

One item in particular was glowing; a book pedestal made out of stone.

When she went to go look, she saw that it was some sort of case and there was an opening in the middle. She soon grabbed the sides and opened it...revealing a book, inside!

"This codex details the archery techniques of the foes of the Byzantine empire..." Lara realized. "This will come in handy."

Now she could fire arrows in rapid succession without having to wait too long to draw an arrow from the quiver.

She went to leave, she saw another scroll, so she looked at it.  
" _It's done._

 _We'll die here, thanks to Carraldus and the madness of the Order of Trinity. My ship will never see water again. We entered the Glacial Sea too far into the winter, would have been turned back, but Carraldus would not abandon this lost Prophet._

 _He and his dead-eyed warriors seized control. He forced the ship through shallow tributaries, until we could go no further. Then he made my crew construct sled runners, and the bastard forced us to tow the ship over land. It was death and excommunication to deny him._

 _But it was death either way. I will make sure he dies here, with us. I have always kept a little poison at the ready in case the ship was taken. Now, it has another use._ "

"The captain of the ancient ship prepares his revenge..." Lara said.

Seeing as how she had found all she could here, Lara decided it was time for her to leave this ship. She used her pickaxe to zip line down back to the point where she started.

Back on track, she jumped a few more cliffs and saw she had to swim, again.

It took a while, but she managed to make it to the other side, and what's more, Tsume was waiting for her.

"Hey boy," she said to him.

He led her the rest of the way till they were out of the cavern.

Soon, they made it to the outside, where they saw the sun rising.

There was a campfire nearby, so they began to make their way over to it through some deep snow.

But then, Tsume stopped and growled.

Lara turned to him, "What is it?" Then she spotted Sofia, standing on some rocks behind them, pointing an arrow at them, specifically at Tsume.

Lara stepped in between them, "Wait! Don't shoot, he's my friend!"

"Friends... with a wolf?" Sofia questioned in disbelief.

"He saved me and my... ex-boyfriend many times," Lara explained. "He and his family are like my own. He's not your enemy, and neither am I."

"That remains to be seen," Sofia said. "You killed those men back there."

"I killed them to survive," Lara said. "I suspect you did too."

Sofia momentarily lowered her bow as she stared at Lara.

"How long have they been here?" Lara asked.

"...Days at most," said Sofia. "The invaders took many of my people prisoner. You should leave this place before it's too late."

"I can't do that," Lara replied. "I came here for something important."

"...So did they," Sofia said as she aimed at Lara again, causing Tsume to growl at her.  
"If I see you again, I'll put an arrow in your throat."

"We're on the same side," Lara said. "I hope I can prove that to you."

An explosion erupted from one of the buildings below where they were, causing Lara to look in that direction.

"What's going on down there?!" she questioned, then turned back to Sofia. "Who-"

But Sofia was gone.

Lara and Tsume looked to each other before they went to the campfire, where they sat to rest for a moment.

"So," Lara began. "There are people who live out here, and they appear to have been here for a very long time...in isolation for decades...maybe centuries. I notice elements of her dress...small adornments that would not be out of place in the Byzantine Empire. Could they really be descendants of the Prophet's people? How much do they know about the Lost City or the Divine Source? It's clear Trinity will do anything to find out. I'm afraid that whoever they are, they're in grave danger. Let's hope that the old proverb of the enemy of my enemy remains true."

Once they'd rested enough, they got up and went down the zipline.

They were now on a path leading into the Soviet Installation.

On the way, they found a dead body laying against a tree stump.

There was a tape recorder on the stump,  
" ** _First day in Siberia and it happens. Two years in Afghanistan, and another in Indonesia, and nothing. But one day out here on the ice, and - pop - I get a kill. Watched the man's eyes go glassy as he begged me for something. Not Russian. No Clue._**

 ** _I waited with him, and watched. One minute he was there, the next, nothing... just meat. Got sick on the snow, all mixed in with the kid's blood. But he's just meat now. And I'm alive._**

 ** _Konstantin keeps telling us we're out here for a special reason, tells us we're doing God's work. I'm starting to see that now._** "

'He's a psychopath,' Lara thought. 'If these are the kind of people Trinity hires... This man, Konstantin... is he the man I ran into in Syria?'

"All units, just got word," A male voice spoke out from nearby. "Konstantin is on his way down from the prison. We need to get this mess in order before he arrives."

Lara brought out her bow before she signaled Tsume to follow her into the base, both of them being as quiet as possible.

She choked the guy on the radio with her bow, then looted him for anything useful.

They moved further, where two more guys stood.

Trying to think of a way to split them up, she noticed some empty alcohol bottles lying around.

Grabbing one, she threw it in a direction behind the two men, where it broke.

"What was that?" One of them asked.

"I'll check," The second guy said, walking away.

Lara snuck up on the first guy and choked him, while Tsume snuck on the second guy and bit his neck.

Then, they hid the bodies and covered the blood with snow so nobody would get suspicious.

There was no way forward except climbing through a short tower to get to the other side.

Tsume found another way around while Lara climbed up.

The area ahead looked a little wrecked and some fire was burning from the explosion. A big helicopter descended near one of the buildings.

"There's more of them arriving..." Lara said before she jumped down.

Soon, Lara and Tsume jumped down and darted towards any cover they could find, be it bushes or behind walls.

Then she climbed up a scaffold and fired an arrow at a guy she saw inside the building ahead of her.

The arrow hit his head, killing him instantly.

Then, Lara shot another one, alerting them to her presence. That's when she glanced down at Tsume and gestured her head forward, giving him the order to attack. The wolf growled before he dashed out, barking wildly before he jumped at one of them and bit his head, crushing his skull in his jaws.

"WOLF!" One of them yelled before he was hit in the head by an arrow.

"Never cry wolf," Lara joked, then jumped down from the scaffold.

She and Tsume headed inside the building and up the rounding steps to the second floor, where she found another tape recorder.  
" _ **I know I've taken some jobs of questionable legality, and I know you're not happy about it. But I couldn't pass up this contract. Been trying to get work with Trinity for years. They're discreet, the pay is obscene, and they always have opportunities.**_

 _ **Now here I am, and I already want out. We're at an abandoned Soviet installation in the middle of nowhere. No one's telling us low level contractors what's going on, but I think I might be helping some seriously scary people get a nuke, or something equally awful. Honestly, that's the best case scenario.**_

 _ **Ping me back if you get this, I've carved out a secure channel on the network. For an operation like this, you'd think they'd have better security. But I guess that's why they hired me.**_ "

'Hmm... it seems Trinity keeps some of its men in the dark,' Lara thought.

Lara pocketed the tape recorder before she noticed a star-shaped plaque, then went over to it and dusted it off.

"An old Soviet plaque," she whispered. "Lenin lived...Lenin lives...Lenin will live forever..."

She then checked ahead and saw she had to do more jumping and climbing, so Tsume would have to find another way around.

At least he knew they wouldn't be separated for long, and this way, he could take out any enemies that Lara couldn't see, so he left.

Lara then headed outside, climbing up to the rooftops and using her pickaxe to zip line down ropeways.

This took her to a basement level, where it looked like the explosion originated from. The place was barely standing and some of the fuel tanks were busted.

The doorway out was blocked by some piled up wood and cloth. Lara grabbed one of the still lit lanterns off the ground and threw it at the pile of wood, burning it away.

When Lara went inside...she gasped quietly upon finding the dead body of a man, leaning against a wall. His head was bloody...and he had a gun next time.

Obviously, he killed himself.

"That's it, we're out of time," A male voice said from the next room. "Shoot him. He'll talk or he'll bleed out."

Lara picked up the revolver and checked it... still loaded.

"You think I fear death?" Another male voice asked.

'An interrogation?' Lara guessed.

"Put a bullet in this savage!" The first voice shouted.

Three gunshots rang out making Lara jump a bit before she went over to a window that was next to her. Inside, two men from Trinity were questioning another man that was tied to a chair.

Aiming through the glass, Lara shot one of the Trinity thugs in the head while the second guy ducked for cover. When he came out to shoot her, she shot him twice the chest, killing him.

With the window broken, Lara climbed into the next room and went over to the man tied to the chair. He was beaten, badly, looked like he was barely alive.

"They have him... imprisoned..." He managed to say. ***cough*** "Got to... got to..." But he went limp.

"No...no-no-no..." Lara pleaded, checking his neck for a pulse. ...Nothing.

"I'm sorry..." She closed his eyes, then pried open the door behind him with her pickaxe.

Soon, Lara managed to make her way inside another room, where she found more Trinity soldiers, and it looked some of them were working on some kind of pipe.

"I don't think I can stop this leak," said one of them. "We might have to crimp the pipe until we can get a new one."

Suddenly, the door opened, and Lara gasped silently upon seeing the same man from Syria: Konstantin. He turned to one particular soldier, who looked rather nervous.

"...I left you in charge here," Konstantin said.

"Yes, sir," the soldier began, "But we didn't expect such heavy resistance-"

Konstantin cupped the soldier's face,  
"You were to be my eyes. I expected you to see. You must know what is at stake with this operation."

"Yes... but..." the soldier pleaded.

"No, you don't," Konstantin replied. "How could someone like you?"

He then stuck his right thumb into the soldier's left eye, gauging it!

"Shh...shh...!" Konstantin shushed. "Go easy, go easy...don't fear this suffering."

Lara grimaced while some of the soldiers just looked away. This almost felt no different from the Solarii.

Soon, the man was lying on the floor, holding his face in pain.

Konstantin turned to the rest of his men,  
"Our goal is within reach, but we must be vigilant. If we succeed here, a new world awaits. One of our own making."

Then his radio went off,  
" **Konstantin, you're needed back at the prison right away. We've got a captive who might know something about the artifact.** "

"On my way," he replied, but said one more thing to his troops. "Remain faithful and you will share in the glory of the Divine Source."

With that, he left.

Lara couldn't help feeling sorry for the man, even if he was part of Trinity. After all, there was only so much one person could take.

Still hidden behind a weapons crate, she shot an arrow at a soldier on a balcony.

It hit him in the head, killing him.

Then she shot another before anybody could catch on.

She snuck up on one that was walking behind the boiler and choked him, then shot another that was by some computers.

That alerted the last two, so one of them went over to the computers, only to be shot by Lara.

Then finally, she shot the last guy in the head.

The man who had his eye gouged out was still writhing in pain on the floor, so she left him alone.

She grabbed a nearby lantern and threw it at the large fuel tank near the shutter door.

The tank was covered in cloth and was leaking fuel. The flame ignited the leak and went inside the tank, causing it to explode, which blew down the door.

Another soldier ran in from outside, but a resounding explosion on his left killed him.

After searching their bodies for extra ammunition, Lara rushed out of the door, and soon after, Tsume came and joined her side.

She checked a Russian plaque on the wall of a building,  
"More Soviet propaganda. "Night won't prevent us from working"."

Then she helped Tsume climb through a gap at a large gate that blocked their way forward.

Once on the other side, they found themselves in an abandoned train yard. And there was a campfire, so they took a moment to rest.

"Konstantin is here; the man who tried to kill me in Syria," Lara explained to Tsume as she upgraded her bow. "He's violent, dangerous... but worse, he appears entirely devoted to his misguided beliefs. I seem to have a habit of running afoul of religious zealots, but I suppose it all goes with the territory. His men on the radio mentioned a prisoner with information, could it be one of the natives I've encountered? And if so, what does he know? Trinity will not be kind in their methods. Perhaps we can find him, find out what he knows..."

Tsume growled, as if understanding what Lara said.

Now that her bow was upgraded, Lara got up, followed by Tsume.

* * *

 **Konstantin is a sick, deluded bastard!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	6. Chapter 5: New Allies & Betrayal

**I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: New Allies & Betrayal**

Lara and Tsume went over to a watchtower and climbed up it, seeing more of the Soviet Installation from the top.

A chopper was landing in the next big area.

"Not getting in that way without getting seen," Lara said before she looked for a way down. "Must be another way."

Noticing a zipline, she had Tsume get between her legs so she could hold onto him.

She jumped on the line and zipped down, holding onto Tsume with her legs.

The zipline took them down to a large shack.

As they got there, they saw two Trinity soldiers get shot down by arrows.

When they landed, a man came out from behind a tree; he looked like one of the remnants.

"Don't shoot, I'm not your enemy," he said.

"Who are you people?" Lara asked.

"All that can come later," the remnant said. "If you want answers, then listen close. We've managed to destroy the old radio tower, but there are repeaters that keep them connected. We need to shut them down. Help me, and I'll let the others know they can trust you and your wolf friend. We need all the allies we can get."

"Alright," Lara said. "I'll keep an eye out for them."

"Good," the remnant said. "We don't have much time."

That's when he noticed Tsume, who growled at him.

"A wolf, huh?" he asked as he got down on his knees and held out his hand, allowing Tsume to sniff his fingers before he licked them. "Is he friendly?"

"Only if you're friendly back," Lara said. "His name is Tsume."

"There are some wolves in the area," the remnant said. "Maybe he can get them to stop attacking."

"Probably," she said. "Come on, boy."

She ran off, with Tsume following after her.

The first big thing in the area was what looked like a lumber-mill.

There was a communication repeater, so Lara tore apart it's open circuit box with her pickaxe.

Then she ran over to a nearby giant rock formation, right above a cave. At the top of the rock was another communication repeater.

Lara jumped up and climbed to the top with her pickaxes, although she did slip a few times, before she reached the repeater and broke it with the pickaxe.

"2 down and 3 to go," said Lara.

She then rode down a zipline to a cliff where the next repeater was.

She broke it apart with her pickaxe, jumped down to the ground and went across the frozen river to find the next one.

As Lara climbed around a rocky cliff, she heard the Trinity soldiers talking on a radio.

"We need to get more information out of the prisoner," said one of them. "If Konstantin has to do it himself, he's not gonna be happy."

"We'll step up the pressure," said another, "but he's clearly had some experience with interrogation techniques before."

"We think he's the leader of the Remnant," said the first soldier. "He has to know about the Divine Source."

Soon, Lara reached the top and found a campfire, which she sat in front of to warm herself up.

As she upgraded her gear, Lara listened to one of her father's tape recordings.

" **I hope you received my last tape in good time,** " Richard's voice said. " **I am becoming increasingly fond of recording these messages to you. Ana says that I need time away from my books and papers every so often, if only to remember why I'm doing all this. I know you hate me going away, but it will be worth it one day. It will all be worth it.** "

With the recording finished, Lara got up and destroyed the fourth repeater, then headed to a nearby small shack to destroy the last one.

Now that all the repeaters were destroyed, she headed back to where the remnant was.

"Have you done it? Are the transmitters destroyed?" asked the Remnant.

"The repeaters are offline," said Lara. "It's done."

"So it is," the Remnant replied. "We don't have much to spare, but if you're fighting with us, you can use this."

He then gave her a makeshift lock pick.

"Thank you," Lara said, before she used it to open a nearby crate, and inside was parts for a semi-auto pistol.

After exploring more of the Installation, in which she explored a few tombs, found more old documents, artifacts and salvage parts for her equipment; Lara climbed back up the rocky cliff where Tsume was waiting patiently for her.

"Good boy, Tsume," Lara said as she patted his head, then they continued on. Tsume noticed that Lara was shivering a little. She was obviously getting colder and that she was starting to push herself a little too far, by now.

They climbed up more cliffs till they got to the disabled Communications Tower.

There was a campfire, a supply shack, and three Trinity goons.

Lara and Tsume quickly dispatched them and checked inside the supply shack. There was a man inside, who looked like he'd been hiding.

"Don't shoot, I'm on your side," the man said, holding his hands up.

"Prove it," Lara said.

"My name is John," the man introduced himself. "I've been working as a maintenance tech for Trinity out here, but I have got to get out of here. These people... are insane. I've been stockpiling gear, but you can have it... if you can pay for it. They won't notice a few missing items, but if they catch wind, or see me with you, I'm a dead man. I'll need some untraceable currency in case things go south, gold preferably. Think we can make a deal?"

"I'll see what I can dig up," Lara said, looking over what he had.

On one table was a crafting tool, a commando outfit and a laser-sight for a rifle. On the next table was a pistol silencer, a rifle grenade launcher and a rope ascender, just like the one she'd used on Yamatai. And finally, on the last table was a Franchi PA8 shotgun and a Heckler & Koch G36KV assault rifle.

She also found another tape recorder, which she picked up and played.

 _ **"It's not nukes. Creepy looking guy with a scarred face named Konstantin gave us a big speech, talked about destiny and something called 'The Source', and frankly, I'm even more baffled.**_

 _ **The other contractors seem to be just as antsy and nervous as I am. But the company men, the guys who've been with Trinity for a long time, they're drinking it up and asking for seconds. It's fucking Jonestown out here.**_

 _ **We're preparing for an assault. Against who, you might ask? There's people here. Like, natives, lost in time.**_

 _ **We're talking furs, skins, and iron arrowheads. We're about to go meet them with attack choppers and fifty cal machine guns.**_

 _ **I'm on the wrong god damn side of history.**_ "

'This won't end well for him,' thought Lara.

She then climbed a ladder up a water tower, where she found another zipline.

But Tsume couldn't follow her up the ladder.

"Tsume, try to find another way," Lara told him.

Tsume nodded and ran off.

Lara rode down the zipline, which took her over a barbed wire fence to another shack.

Hearing voices inside, she pressed against the wall of the shack to listen in.

" **Your reports have ceased. Trinity is growing concerned,** " A mysterious male spoke from a radio.

Lara peaked inside a broken window, seeing Konstantin holding said radio.

"We've had trouble with the natives," he said. "Our communications were offline, but everything is now under control."

" **If the situation becomes untenable, we will step in,** " the mystery man replied.

"It won't," Konstantin assured him. "You sent me for a reason. I was chosen for this. I will succeed."

" **See that you do,** " the mystery man said.

"Hey!"

Two armored Trinity soldiers caught Lara hiding. Before she could fight back, one of them hit her in the face with the butt of his rifle, knocking her unconscious.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Lara woke up, she found that she was no longer wearing her coat and just the clothes underneath...and she was tied to a chair for some reason. She was dizzy and her ears rang for a moment, but she managed to come around after a moment.

"Lara! Are you all right?!"

Lara looked up and gasped upon seeing that it was Ana, who was also tied up!

"Ana?" Lara questioned. "What - what are you doing here?!"

"I don't know, I can't remember!" Ana said, sounding a little panicked. "What's happening Lara? I'm scared."

Lara struggled against her bindings, but couldn't get loose,  
"I'm so sorry. I didn't think they'd come after you. This is all my fault."

"Who... who are they?" Ana asked. "What do they want?"

"The same thing my father was after," Lara answered.

"Oh no... Lara... I told you not to do this," Ana scolded her. "Whatever they want, just give it to them."

"It's not that simple," Lara replied. "Just hold on, I'll get us out of here...somehow..."

She struggled more to get free, but still couldn't. Then the door to the room they were in opened, and Konstantin walked in, holding a small leather rope.

Lara gasped, realizing what he planned to do.

"Don't touch her!" she shouted, but Konstantin just approached Ana...and began to choke her with it.

"Talk!" Konstantin demanded with gritted teeth.

"No!" Lara shouted. "No, you bastard!"

"Where's the Divine Source?!" asked Konstantin.

"Please, just let her go!" Lara shouted. "I don't know where it is!"

He still kept choking her, while Lara's eyes desperately pleaded.

Finally, he stopped.

Ana coughed a bit, "That's enough, she doesn't know."

Konstantin un-cuffed her from the chair as she coughed a bit more.

Lara looked at her, confused, "What...?" Then she realized. "You... No... you're with them?! I can't believe this. You... you cu-!"

Konstantin backhanded her in the face before she could finish her insult.

Ana smiled at her, cruelly, "You couldn't let it go, could you? I knew you'd find your way to this place."

"What did you expect?" Lara asked, glaring at her.

"It doesn't have to be this way," Ana said. "We seek the same thing. We could use someone like you. You want a purpose in your life; we can provide that."

"You've got be kidding," Lara exclaimed. "I've seen how Trinity operates!"

"Is that a no?" Ana asked.

"It's a no fucking way!" Lara yelled. "Tell me, Ana; were you recruited by Trinity before or after you started screwing my father?!"

"I loved Richard," Ana said. "But he was blinded by idealism, and it destroyed him." She stood up from her chair and walked over to Lara. "What would you do with the artifact, hm? Show it to the world? Redeem your father's good name? Use it in a poor attempt to win back the love of your life? You're still so naïve... just a frightened little girl trying to walk in her daddy's shoes. That's why Owen left you."

Lara spat in her face.

Ana wiped her cheek while Konstantin kicked Lara to the floor.

"We're done here," He said as he prepared to shoot her.

"No, not yet," said Ana as she pulled his arm down, then looked at Lara. "...You and I... we can still be on the same side of history, Lara. Think about it."

Konstantin picked her up and dragged her out of the room. He took her to another room where there were a couple of prison cells, and threw her in one, locking the door.

Lara glared at him and kicked the bars, "This isn't over! Bastard!"

But he simply left.

With her hands still cuffed behind her back, Lara sat against one of the cell walls that had bars so she could see into the other cell.

"Perhaps that's all he knows how to be," a male voice spoke out, startling her.

She looked into the other cell, seeing a middle aged man inside. He had semi-long black hair and a full beard, and blue eyes. He was a long blue coat made of old materials, and the same kind of clothing the remnants were wearing. Owen would've said he looked like Keanu Reeves's character John Wick.

"I thought I was alone," said Lara as she brought her hands out from behind her back, then pulled out a bobby pin from her hair.

"So did I," the stranger said, "And yet, here we are. So what should I call my new acquaintance?"

"Nothing," Lara replied, using the bobby pin to unlock her cuffs. "I won't be staying."

They heard the muffled sound of a man screaming in pain, like he was being tortured.

"Konstantin has little patience," the stranger said.

Lara tossed away her cuffs and stood up, "Nor do I."

"So I see. Nice trick," The stranger answered, standing up to watch her as she struggled to pull the bars open. "Can you get us out of here?"

Lara turned to him, "There's no us. I don't even know who you are, or why you're here. ***deep sigh*** Sorry... I'm not feeling particularly trusting right now."

"You won't get far without me," the stranger said.

Lara laughed a bit, "You don't know how far I've come."

The stranger smiled, "Your eyes say as much. I also know what a person looks like when she's deeply in love and suffering from heartache."

Lara paused before she glanced at the stranger.  
'So, he's perceptive.' she thought.

"What do you know about these people?" she asked him.

"They're a sect, ancient and secretive," he answered. "They believe themselves to be doing the work of God."

Lara scoffed, "From what I've seen, they're pretty far from holy."

She went over to the one of the walls of her cell and broke off part of a pipe.

"And what do you plan to do with that?" the stranger asked.

She went over to another wall, that had a crack in it and hit it with the pipe, making a small gap that she could squeeze through.

"They'll have heard that," the stranger told her.

"All the more reason to get out of here," she replied.

Soon, she slipped through the hole, only to find herself in a room with a table and several supplies...including a bow and a rope.

"Find a way out?" asked the stranger.

"No," Lara replied, "But I did find something useful."

She took the bow, rope, and a quiver that had some arrows.

She squeezed back through the gap into her cell, where she used her newly acquired gear to shoot a rope arrow at a large tie of ropes on the top area of her cell door. She then pulled it loose, opening a hole that she could get through.

"It worked," said the stranger. "Can you get out?"

Lara climbed up the bars and made her way through the opening, then walked over to shelf full of supplies.

"Wait!" the stranger called. "Let me out, too. I can help you."

"I can't trust you," said Lara.

"And what would your love say?" he asked.

Lara froze at that before she sighed.  
"Don't talk like you know him," she said.

"We may not be enemies," the stranger said. "I can see that. I suspect you do too."

"I work better alone," Lara said.

"Now I know that's not true," the stranger argued. "You can manage on your own, but you're at your best when he's at your side."

"Please, stop," said Lara. "I...I don't like talking about him, all right? Just...please."

"Fair enough," the stranger said. "I know the land."

"I'm a fast learner," Lara said.

"I've no doubt of that," the stranger replied. "Maybe I can offer something more valuable... I know what you're all after."

Lara gasped quietly...but then she sighed before she looked down and spotted a key in a locker.

She took it, along with another radio.

She went over to the stranger's cell and unlocked it.

"Thank you," the stranger said as he stepped out. "I'm Jacob."

"Lara," she replied, then handed him the second radio. "Take this. In case we get separated."

Jacob stared after Lara before he began to follow her.

* * *

 **The fan wiki website about Tomb Raider says that thing about Jacob looking like John Wick. XD**

 **Everybody keeps throwing salt in the wound of Lara's broken heart over Owen.**

 **I figured with how old and wise Jacob is, he'd be extremely perceptive about people.**

 **Read and review, please!**


	7. Chapter 6: Master Chief

**You'll see why the chapter title is named after the Halo video game's protagonist.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Master Chief**

"We have to move," Jacob said. "The guards will be here soon to do their rounds."

"Do you know the way out?" asked Lara.

"Yes," Jacob replied. "I've had time to study this place."

Before she followed, Lara saw a tape recorder on a desk in front of the cells.

Konstantin's voice spoke from it,  
 ** _"We began invasion of the valley not twenty-four hours ago. I expected resistance and have not been disappointed._**

 ** _The people of the valley think they defeat us, but the harder they fight, the stronger my resolve grows. If they weren't protecting something, they wouldn't martyr themselves so. they wouldn't endure tortures with such resolve._**

 ** _They are believers. I respect that. But they are on the wrong side of this battle. It will not be long now. A new, better world is at hand._** "

'Trinity is here in force... with a lunatic in command,' Lara thought, then caught up to Jacob, who was walking down a stairwell.

"How long were you in that cell?" she asked.

"Long enough to learn that Konstantin won't stop until he's found what he's looking for," Jacob answered.

"The Divine Source, is it here?" she asked.

Jacob chuckled a bit, "Trust must go both ways, Lara."

Lara could only sigh. Of course, it wouldn't be that easy.

They came to a room in the basement level that had a projector on.

And there was another tape recorder on a desk, this time from Ana,  
" _ **I've finally laid my betrayals bare. Lara knows the truth.**_

 _ **Now a strange series of emotions has gripped me. Remorse, certainly. Remorse for a piece of me that was left inside that tortured cell.**_

 _ **But something else, too.**_

 _ **I know Konstantin thinks that I have lost my edge, that my time with the Crofts has made me soft. But he's wrong. It isn't softness. It feels instead like a new kind of resolve.**_

 _ **I knew Lord Croft to be an intelligent man. I know his daughter holds secrets in her head. As an ally, she'd be invaluable.**_

 _ **As an enemy, she'll be a difficult problem. I must make sure that Konstantin's arrogance doesn't get the better of him as we take her on.**_ "

"A fragment of Ana's personal journal," Lara said out loud, venting her frustrations. "She's been manipulating my family for years. All this time... and I trusted her."  
She then sighed as she put it away.

Truth be told, Lara felt very betrayed. She almost saw Ana as a mother figure ever since her own mother died...and yet, there was a part of her that told her not to trust Ana. She just didn't want to think it was true.

Then she looked at the image from the projector, "What is this?"

"A history lesson," Jacob answered. "This place has its own scars."

"It was a work camp..." Lara said. The image showed people gathered in a crowd. She pressed a button on the projector to go to the next image, which showed soldiers forcing people to work, "The Soviets sent prisoners here... to work in the mines."

"Even that wasn't enough," Jacob said. "They captured our people, took children from their mothers to work as slaves..."

"God, it must have been horrible," Lara sighed, shivering a bit from the cold.

As Lara looked up at the projection, she saw that they weren't mining out any ore of any kind. Just digging at the cave walls.

"This doesn't look like mining," she said. "This looks more like...an excavation."

"It's...possible," said Jacob. "They dug anywhere they caught a hint of wealth."

The next projection had the slaves lifting some sort of statue.

"Those," Lara said. "Those are ancient. What did they find?"

"You'll have to ask them," Jacob said. "We have to go, we aren't safe here."

Lara went over to door on the far left and pried it open with her pickaxe, leading to another stairwell.

"Our best chance of escape is to make our way to the old train yard," Jacob said as they went up the stairs.

"And then what?" Lara asked.

"My village is in a valley on the other side of the mountain, we'll be safe there," Jacob told her.

As they continued to make their escape, they could hear the sound of a helicopter, outside.

"Command chopper 2, last chopper outbound," said one of the Trinity soldiers.

" **Roger,** " said Konstantin.

"That'll be the last shipment," one of the soldiers said. "Reports of trouble at the communications depot. More natives?"

"Not sure," replied the other soldier. "We caught an intruder from the outside. Some woman, she stirred up trouble on the perimeter. But even though she's been caught, something's still fucking with our operation."

"Any idea what or who?" The first soldier asked.

"Vague reports came in of someone in a ski-mask and goggles, packing more heat than The Punisher," The second soldier said.

"The Punisher...?" Lara whispered as she climbed a ladder up to the roof, which had a big hole in it so she and Jacob could get out.

She then watched the helicopter drop a loading crate in the yard as Jacob came beside her.

"Stay here, I'll take care of this," She told him.

She dropped off the roof, quietly and hid by some trees.

She looked around and spotted a lookout, manning a spotlight. She readied her bow and took aim before she fired an arrow in his head, killing him on the spot without anyone seeing.

Then Lara shot down another man who was working on some sort of machine on the roof.

Unfortunately, this alerted some of the other soldiers.

One of them spotted her, so they all took cover, prepared to engage her in a gun fight.

"Shit!" Lara cursed, she only had her bow and arrows. She got back her revolver, but it was empty.

Then, her loyal wolf companion showed up and mauled one of the soldiers to death. Another soldier was about to fire at him, but his brains suddenly splattered out of his head.

"What the fuck... sniper?" Lara questioned.

That's when she spotted someone, standing on a cliff nearby, holding an Accuracy International AW50 sniper rifle.

'Who's that?' Lara asked as the mysterious man prepared to take aim, again.

"It's the Punisher!" shouted one of the Trinity soldiers, just before he was shot in the head.

Using the mystery man's assistance to her advantage, she shot a few more soldiers with her arrows while Tsume and the mystery man killed the rest.

"Tsume!" Lara went over to him and hugged him. "Thank God you showed up!"

Tsume whimpered and looked her in the eye, showing his worry that he hadn't seen her in a while.

"I'm okay... just cold," she said, shivering. When she was captured, they took her coat and gloves, leaving her in only her dark gray Henley over her desert tank top.

She looked over to where the mystery man was and waved at him. The man got up and walked away. She went over to one of the buildings in the yard that had some computer consoles and other junk.

There was another tape recorder, from Konstantin,  
" ** _Ana has let the mask fall. She and I are finally, fully reunited. It has been difficult without her these past years. When I'm weak, it's always been her voice that gave me strength. When she loses hope, I ignite that hope for her._**

 ** _...that being said, I must confess that I am worried about her. Her health falters, yes, but my concern is with her resolve._**

 ** _I fear that some piece of her was lost in her time with the Crofts. She must have faked her emotions for Lord Croft so powerfully they became real. And now I fear that has spilled over to Lara._** "

"Konstantin's wondering if Ana has become too sentimental," Lara scoffed. "That's not exactly how I would characterize her behavior..." Tsume looked a bit confused. "Oh, when I was captured, I found out Ana's with Trinity, even back when my father was alive." Tsume growled at this revelation. "I know, what a bitch."

Soon, Lara looked over to a control console and pressed a button, which caused a light to turn green before the gate opened. Then, Lara picked up her walkie-talkie.

"Jacob," she said. "I found a way to open the inner gate."

" **Make your way to the courtyard,** " said Jacob. " **I'm already inside.** "

"Got it," said Lara as she began to make her way outside with Tsume following behind her, making sure to kill anyone who might still be alive from the skirmish.

Going through the gate, she found a rope post that she'd be able to use to connect a rope to another post with her rope arrows.

With that, she managed to climb up to the roof while Tsume climbed up using some old crates. As she neared a window, however, she ducked and gasped when she heard Konstantin's voice, inside. Thankfully, he didn't spot her.

"I have patrols headed to all major dig sites," said Konstantin, "here, here, and here..."

Tsume growled upon hearing Konstantin's voice, but Lara shushed him.

Then she saw Jacob inside.

"What is he doing?" she questioned.

"This is the place, I can feel it," Konstantin's voice said.

Lara shimmied along the building till she found an open window to get her in without being seen.

"The Soviet records are quite convincing," Ana's voice rang out. "But I want to get into these ruins myself."

Lara and Tsume crept over to Jacob on the walkway and hid with him.

Below them was Ana and Konstantin, standing over a table with a big map laid out, and dozens of other papers. Three soldiers stood guard around them.

"I can't wait to leave this frozen hell," Ana said.

"Then I have good news," Konstantin told her. "Reconnaissance from the scouts. The natives have a settlement on the other side of the mountain." He laid his finger on one of the markers on the map.

"Soon," Ana said as she put her hand on Konstantin's arm. "You will have your day."

"We both will," said Konstantin. "Just as long as you don't lose focus again."

"What do you mean?" Ana asked.

"You're sentimental about her," said Konstantin. "The Croft girl...I can tell because she's still alive. We can't afford to dwell on the past."

"You doubt me?" Ana exclaimed. "You know what I've given to Trinity. What I've sacrificed! What I face-"  
She began coughing, unable to finish her sentence. Konstantin patted her back. "I'm fine."

"Life has not been kind to either of us," Konstantin said. "But I swore I 'd always protect you."

"Now who's being sentimental?" Ana countered.

"I promise you, all of this will be worth it in the end," he replied. "With the Divine Source, you will live. But more importantly, you will live in a world cleansed of sin."

Ana placed her hand over his, then looked at the map,  
"Send your men to this settlement. Find out what they know."

Jacob was about to go out there, but Lara stopped him and shook her head.

"It's too dangerous," she whispered...although, even though she hated Ana, right now, she couldn't help but feel just a bit concerned when she heard her cough.

Until, Ana lit a cigarette and took a long whiff.

Konstantin looked at her with concern.

"Let me have my pleasures," Ana told him. "None of this will matter the day our work is accomplished."

" **Konstantin, you're needed in the holding cells,** " a male voice said from a radio.

Before he left, he said to Ana, "We're in this together, sister."

"Always," she replied.

With that, everyone left the room.

'Sister?' thought Tsume. 'I almost thought he was her mate!'

Lara got up and went down to where the map was.

There was also what looked like a page from a religious book.

Lara read what it said, " _Mankind shall be judged, the non-believers turned to ash and swept away. And the pure of faith will be raised up and given... life eternal._ "

Suddenly, an alarm started ringing out. Konstantin had just gone to the holding cells, so he most likely discovered that Lara and Jacob were gone.

Lara looked down and saw some grates in the floor, then looked up at Jacob, who was still on the balcony.

"Get out!" she called to him. "I'll find you!"

Jacob nodded before he ran off while Lara and Tsume jumped into the grates to hide. Perfect timing, too, for the Trinity soldiers came rushing inside.

Under the grating was some murky water, but they trudged through it, making sure to stay quiet.

"We've got to find them," said one of the soldiers. "Keep looking!"

"They have to be here, somewhere," said another.

" **Prison floor is clear,** " said Konstantin through an intercom. " **Eyes open. They have to still be here.** "

Tsume growled at the men, but luckily not loud enough to hear.

They eventually came to a hole in a floor above them, leading into a room that was clear.

Lara climbed out, then helped Tsume get up.

" **Lara,** " Jacob's voice said from her radio. " **The train yard is on the north end of the gulag. I'll wait for you there.** "

"On my way," Lara replied.

Someone banged on one of the doors that led out of the room she was in.

"The control room door is locked from the inside," A soldier's voice said. "We're gonna have to break it down."

"Damn, got to get out of here," Lara muttered.

Then she saw another tape recorder, from Ana,  
" _ **Strange being in the field again. I was undercover for so long, locked in a life of comfort at Croft Manor. Here, there is no comfort at all. The air is frozen, the food is canned and cold. The company, aside from Konstantin, is abysmal.**_

 _ **But I asked to be here. I need to be here. I do not have the luxury of time or patience. Konstantin and I began this journey together; I will be there when he fulfills his destiny.**_

 _ **So for now, I'll breathe deep. I'll let the cold air burn my lungs. I'll let it remind me that I'm still alive. And let it fuel me for the final push towards our destiny.**_ "

"More pages of Ana's personal journal," Lara said. "She's been working for Trinity longer that I've known her. Everything I know about her is a lie..."

Tsume went up to Lara and nudged her hand, causing her to smile before she gently pet him.

"I'm fine, Tsume," she said. "Come on, let's get going."

They exited the room and locked the door behind them.

The next room was partially flooded, with a generator in the water, electrifying it.

Lara knew that treading into the water would not be a good idea...unless she wanted to get hit with a thousand volts, coursing through her body.

'If I wanted that,' she thought, 'I would have had Owen bite my neck.'

Luckily, there was a crank with ropes tied around it, and the generator also had ropes tied around it.

Lara connected the generator to the crank with a rope arrow, and turned it with her pickaxe.

The connected ropes pulled the generator towards the crank, which also pulled it out of the water.

"There, no deep fried Lara today," Lara joked.

Then, Lara approached the door on the other side with Tsume swimming through the water after her. However, as she forced the door open, she gasped as one of Trinity's soldiers came bursting in!

Luckily for Lara, Tsume was on him in a flash, lunging at the man and biting his face!

While he was getting mauled, Lara grabbed his assault rifle from his hand. It was a WASR-2.

"Let's go, Tsume," said Lara. "And stay close!"

Tsume, who had just finished ripping out the man's throat, soon trotted along behind her, keeping a sharp eye for any enemies she couldn't see.

She threw the door open and opened fire on two soldiers that were right outside.

"She's got an assault rifle!" cried one of the soldiers as they ran for cover. Tsume ran out first, attacking anyone who wasn't in Lara's sights while Lara fired the rifle at someone who was hiding behind a table with a lit oil lantern, which burst into flames.

"Watch your tail, Tsume!" Lara called as she shot a man who almost stabbed Tsume with a knife, then shot down two more.

Moving further, she shot anyone else that tried to attack her and her wolf friend.

But when they got pinned by constant machine gunfire, Lara had an idea.

Along her journey through the mountains, she'd collected magnesite and chromite ore from some of the caves.

She grabbed an empty soup can that was laying in the snow beside her and put some ore in it, creating a makeshift shrapnel grenade.

She tossed it at two more soldiers, and the grenade burst into flames, killing them both and allowing Lara and Tsume to continue moving forward.

Heading inside the shack, she shot three more soldiers, and found another tape recorder.  
" ** _As we push deeper into the valley, I find myself staring at the ruins and pondering my own mortality. These structures have been here for ages waiting for this moment. I can feel their anticipation. The stone itself wants us to succeed._**

 ** _And what is there to stop us? Non-believers, the fearful and the lost. Those that hid the source from Trinity for so long._**

 ** _We are the very people who would use what's hidden here as it was intended to be used._**

 ** _This world is too corrupt, too rotten, too sick to be saved by any means other than Trinity. We will have our army. A righteous man will lead it. Konstantin will be that man._** "

'Another part of Ana's personal journal,' Lara thought. 'She's completely bought into Konstantin's delusions...'

Then she heard Tsume bark, causing her to turn and see him jumped down a hole in the floor. Lara jumped down with him into some cold water...as if she wasn't already cold enough. How she wished she had her coat.

Lara followed Tsume under the old building, even as a chopper flew overhead. Luckily, they managed to avoid getting spotted. That's when they heard the sound of the walkie-talkie crackling, causing Jacob to pick it up.

"Jacob?" she asked. "Is that you, Jacob?"

" **Lara, be careful!** " Jacob said. " **They're everywhere. You'll run into some trouble-** "

"There he is!" shouted one of the Trinity soldiers. "Take him out!"

" **Dammit!** " Jacob cursed as gunshots were heard. " **I gotta go.** "

"Shit!" Lara cursed.

They came to a campfire, but didn't stop at it. They both knew they couldn't rest when they were so deep in enemy territory.

There was a gate up ahead that was partially open, so they went over to squeeze through it.

"Hold up!" a male voice spoke out from behind them. "Don't be an idiot."

Lara turned around to see the mystery man climb over a snowplow. Now that she was face to face with him, she took a moment to look at him.

He was wearing a black ski-mask and reflective-lense goggles, a light-grey coat for camouflage in the snow. He was tall, but fit.

He had a Heckler & Koch MP5SD3 in his hands and various other firearms on his person.

His voice sounded just like John-117 AKA Master Chief from the Halo video games.

"...You must be this Punisher I heard so much about," said Lara while Tsume growled.

"I prefer 'Master Chief'," he replied. "Even though I'm armed to the tee."

"...How do I know you're not really an enemy?" asked Lara.

"Hey, if I was, I would've shot you and the wolf, by now," said the stranger.

Lara rolled her eyes at that, but she knew he had a point,  
"Well...I guess if you're going to help, I can allow you to come along."

"I don't exactly need your permission," he countered, then squeezed through the gap in the gate, followed by Lara and Tsume.

* * *

 **The Mystery Man has revealed himself!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	8. Chapter 7: Lara's Conflicted Resolve

**You're about to see more of what Chief can do!**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Lara's Conflicted Resolve**

"Hit the lights! Now!"

Spotlights turned on, nearly blinding them, followed by gunfire.

They both dove for cover and responded with their own gunfire.

"Die, bitch!" shouted one of the soldiers, but Lara pointed her assault rifle at him and shot him right through the head.

"Incoming on your right!" shouted Chief as he shot another soldier that was about to jump Lara from the right.

"Thank you!" Lara said, only to shoot another man behind Chief.

"Likewise," he replied.

They shot any other soldiers they saw, Lara even used her rope arrows to collapse the roofs of some of the shacks where some soldiers were positioned.

Before too long, they were all gone.

Then, three more soldiers kicked down some doors from inside a shack.

One of them had heavy military armor.

"Hostiles spotted," the armored guy said. "Croft and Rambo. Move out, make it quick."

Lara made a few shrapnel grenades and threw them, killing a couple soldiers, but more came out.

Chief put away his MP5SD3 and pulled out a beige colored FN SCAR-L CQC mounted with an FN MK 13 grenade launcher.

He and Lara opened fire on the rest of the soldiers, with Chief taking out the armored guy by launching a grenade.

Another guy with armor came out, and a few more soldiers.

"Shit!" Lara cursed, as her rifle had just run out of ammo.

"This isn't looking too good," said Chief while Tsume growled viciously.

"What do we do?!" asked Lara.

Chief launched a grenade that killed two of the soldiers and fired endlessly until the guy's armor was blown off and killed him too.

"That."

Lara chuckled a bit, then looted the dead soldiers for ammo.

In another shack was another tape recorder, from Konstantin,  
" ** _As we push deeper into the valley, I feel re-assured that this is the work I was chosen to perform._**

 ** _My stigmata itch with sensation. It is a constant reminder of my higher purpose, of my singular position in this higher purpose. I was a child, innocent to the evils of the world. Then, one night, I woke in such pain, a scream on my lips._**

 ** _Blood dripped from my palms. When I saw it I was terrified._**

 ** _It marked me. It meant something._**

 ** _I cannot shirk this mission anymore that I can shirk my own hands._** "

'Oh God...' Lara thought. 'Someone did this to him... Someone pushed him onto this path when he was a child...'

"Hey!" called Chief. "Over here, down these stairs."

Lara nodded before she and Tsume followed after him. It was then that Lara decided that now was a good time to check in on Jacob, so she picked up her walkie-talkie.

"Jacob?" she asked. "I think I'm close to the train yard...are you there?"

No answer came.

They came to the train yard, climbed through a couple parked trains, then found Jacob, fighting a Trinity soldier.

The soldier swung at him with a knife, but Jacob dodged with surprising fluidity and skill, swiped his knife and stabbed him.

He then saw Lara, Tsume and Chief approach,  
"What took you so long?"

"I thought I lost you back there," Lara said.

"Not a chance," Jacob said, taking the knife and cleaning it. "Thanks for getting me out of that place."

A helicopter started flying towards them.

"RUN!" Chief yelled.

"We can get out through there!" Jacob said, running towards another parked train.

The four of them ran as fast as they could, trying to avoid the gunfire from the helicopter, but when they made out of the train car, the helicopter fired a missile at the tracks in front of them!

"Dammit!" Chief cursed as they turned to see more Trinity soldiers, aiming their guns at them.

"We're trapped!" Jacob said.

" **We've got them!** " A voice yelled from the helicopter. " **They're on the tracks!** "

" **Don't let them escape!** " Konstantin's voice said.

Lara looked down, to the ice. Parts of it were broken, giving access to the freezing water. She looked at Jacob, who nodded, then all four of them jumped!

Once she was in the water, Lara swam as fast as she could, through a sunken structure to the other side, then towards some light she saw.

She was starting to run out of air as she swam for the surface. She almost blacked out, but made it.

Once out of the water, she gasped for breath, climbed onto the ice and coughed up some water. Then she hugged herself and shivered.

Tsume barked as he began to tug on her arm.

"Hey! Wake up!" Chief shouted. "Now's not a good time for you to fall asleep!"

Lara looked up and gasped upon seeing the helicopter, shining its searchlight down on them.

"RUN!" Chief yelled before they all dashed across the broken ice, avoiding gunfire the whole way!

As they ran, they had to climb walls and ride down a zipline as the chopper practically destroyed everything around them!

Even the icy ground they ran on was breaking apart, forcing them to jump between gaps.

When they rode down their second zipline, the helicopter shot the tower the rope was attached to, causing Lara, Chief and Tsume to fall into the water below.

Lara lost consciousness from the fall, but Chief and Tsume swam for her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 _A gunshot rang out from Richard Croft's office!_

 _Nine year old Lara ran to his office, bursting through the double-doors, to find her father lying over his desk._

 _"Dad, is everything alright?" she asked. But he didn't answer, or even move. "Dad?"_

 _Taking a closer look, she saw he had a gun in his left hand, still smoking from just being fired. Blood dripping from his head onto the floor, next to the newspaper that said " **DISGRACED! RENOWNED HISTORIAN'S WILD CLAIMS DEBUNKED** "._

 _"DAD, NO!" Lara screamed. "WINSTON?! WINSTON, PLEASE HELP!"_

 _The Croft Family butler rushed to the office from her screams,  
_ _"Miss Lara, what is... Good God...!"_

 _"...Dad... please, no...!" Lara cried as Winston knelt down and pulled her into a hug, letting her weep._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _End Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara gasped as she smelled some sort of smoke being waved around her face, causing her to cough before she sat up and saw Tsume wrapped around her, trying to keep her warm.

"Take it easy," Jacob told her, helping her sit up. He then handed her a cup of tea, "Drink this, it'll help."

She took it, "You could've left me in that river."

"Would you have left me?" Jacob asked.

Lara chuckled a bit, "I'd have thought about it."

That made Jacob chuckle as well, "What makes you think I didn't? Besides, you're wolf friend and the Chief were the ones who went for you first."

Learning this, Lara pet Tsume and looked at Chief, who was leaning against a bookshelf, arms crossed.

"Thanks, again," she told him. He just nodded in response.

Taking a look around, she realized they were in a small cave set up like a makeshift home. There were a few bookshelves stacked with books, blankets and carpets on the floor, some furniture and an old-styled oven.

"So, what makes you risk so much to come here?" Jacob asked.

Lara took a sip of tea, and took a deep breath before answering, "The Divine Source."

Jacob took a minute before responding, "I know what you're looking for. But I want to know why."

"When I was young, it was just me and my father," Lara explained. "He was an archeologist too. In his last years, he was obsessed with myths about immortality. Of course, no one believed him... including me. Our last conversation was a fight, he... He took his own life. I thought I'd come to terms with it, but..."

Jacob sat beside her, "Something else happened."

"And I saw something that I thought was impossible," Lara continued. "It changed everything. I realized my father was right. He died alone and broken, but he died for something."

"So, you believe the Divine Source is real?" Jacob asked.

"I honestly don't know," she said. "But if there is any truth to it, I have to find out. It... it needs to be researched and studied. It could make a difference to the world. It's not something to be hidden away."

"After that, then what?" Chief asked. "Destroy what means to be human?"

"Hmph," Lara scoffed. "You sound like someone I once knew...he said the exact same thing...but he just doesn't understand."

"Or, could it be that you're as obsessed about this as your father was that you're blind to everything else?" Chief countered. "All logic and feelings about all the negative consequences of immortality are completely lost on you. If that's the case, then you're not as smart as I thought, Lara Croft."

Lara only glared at him.  
"And you think you actually know what you're talking about?" she asked.

"Actually, he does," Jacob said. "A difference is not always for the best."

"Jacob..." Lara whispered in disbelief.

"...Let me ask you something," said Jacob. "Would you wish Trinity to have the secret to immortality?"

"Of course not," Lara replied.

"Then I ask you not to abandon your quest," Jacob said, "But to alter its path. Join me and my people. Help us repel Konstantin and Trinity."

"That's why I'm here," Chief said.

"And after that's done?" Lara asked.

"Then you leave our valley untouched, but knowing that you've done the right thing," Jacob said.

Lara shook her head, "No, I'm sorry. I can't do that."

"Can't or won't?" Jacob questioned.

"I'll fight Trinity with you, but my goal remains the same," she said. "If I give up now..."

"You'd feel like you'd be letting him down?" Jacob asked.

"Not just him," Lara continued. "I need answers, Jacob. I need to understand."

"Understanding something is one thing," Chief said. "Doing it for the sake of your deceased father is another. Even if you're an archeologist, you can't dwell on the past."

Tsume stared at Chief before he turned to Lara, whining in concern.

"Even if it's something happy?" Lara asked, pulling out her engagement ring from her pocket.

"So, you were married?" Jacob asked.

"Engaged, but I kept delaying the wedding because of the Divine Source," Lara said. "We had our first real fight, and he asked me what was more important to me; my father's research or us... I didn't have an answer... So he left..."

"I'm sorry," Chief said. "But how would you feel if your roles were reversed?"

Lara looked up, thoughtfully.

"...I suppose...I would feel a little neglected," she said. "Not to mention lonely..." She hugged her knees to her chest. "...Just as I felt when I was a child."

Jacob nodded and stood up.

"Are you leaving?" Chief asked.

Jacob nodded again, "Right now, my concern is for my village. It's over the mountain pass, a day's journey on foot. But there may be a faster way through the old copper mine. You rest, I'll be back soon." He smiled, then turned to leave. "By the way, these should help keep you warm."

He gestured to a coat and scarf on a table, then he left.

The coat was olive drab colored and the scarf was light grey and made of wool.

Lara went over to put it on, already feeling better from the warmth it brought, then she turned to face Tsume and Chief.

"Well, shall we?" asked Chief.

"...Yes," Lara nodded before they began to head out.

'...I don't know why,' she thought, 'but...I can't help feeling like I met this man before.'

She got out her radio, "Jacob, are you there?" No response, only static. "Dammit, where is he?"

"At least we know where to go," Chief reminded her.

"True," she agreed. "But, there's something about Jacob that I can't quite put my finger on."

"What do you mean?" Chief asked.

"It's strange, but almost comforting," Lara explained. "Like I could tell him anything and it wouldn't faze him. I sense no judgment from him. Yet, at the same time, he's hard to read. My instincts tell me he's a good man. He saved my life, same as you - I think I can trust you both, at least for now."

"Gee, thanks," Chief said sarcastically.

"But I can't shake this nagging feeling that Jacob knows more than he's letting on," Lara added.

"I've got that same feeling," Chief said.

"...Maybe we'll talk to him about it, later," said Lara as they continued on.

They rode down a zipline back to the area where Lara had helped that remnant.

"By the way, I have a couple gifts that should work better for you," Chief said, kneeling down to get something out of his backpack. First, a Remington 1911 R1 pistol. Second, some parts of an assault rifle that he resembled back into a Heckler & Koch G36KV.  
"Bought the assault rifle from that weapons supplier, John."

"Thought so, it looked the same," Lara said, taking the weapons as he handed them to her. "Thanks."

"No problem," he replied.

The pistol was just like the one she inherited from Roth; the same one she used on Yamatai.

Before she could ask where he got it, he was already standing,  
"We should get a move on."

"Right," she agreed, holstering her pistol and rifle.

They ran through the Soviet Installation to what looked like an old Soviet camp next to a copper mill.

Tsume growled at the hanging corpses on the gate.

"Soviet soldiers," said Lara. "Something awful happened here."

"Yeah, and I don't wanna stick around to find out what," said Chief as he and Lara sat in front of a campfire. "We should rest here, for a bit, just to prepare for what's ahead."

"Yes," Lara nodded as she and Tsume sat down, too.

"...You're thinking about your old man, aren't you?" asked Chief. "Not that I'm prying or anything."

Lara sighed, "I think about him every day. For years, I was so angry with him. For losing himself in his work, for chasing what I thought were fairytales. I had no idea. I keep telling myself that I was young, that I couldn't understand. But I still lost him. And now... for some reason, I feel more connected to him than I ever did when he was alive. He never got this far, but I know he's with me. The Divine Source is here and I'm going to find it. He knew that it could change the way we understand the human soul, that it could change the world. But he's gone now, and I'm the only one left who knows he was right."

"Change isn't always a good thing," Chief said. "Especially the kind of change you're talking about."

Deep inside, Lara got angry...but at the same time, she couldn't help wondering why it was that anyone would say that immortality would be so wrong...and why did this person seem so familiar to her?

"Anyway, I think we've wasted enough time," said Chief. "Let's get going."

"...Yeah," Lara replied.

* * *

 **Chief sounds like a man who's seen some shit.**

 **I added Winston because it didn't make sense that he didn't show up when that happened. Plus, Lara needed comfort.**

 **Also, I'm changing Winston's age. He was usually depicted as ancient and decrepit, but this time; he's around the same age as Batman's faithful and witty butler, Alfred. :)**

 **Read and review, please!**


	9. Chapter 8: Underground Temple

**In case anyone's wondering; all the other remnant missions in the area were done by Chief.**

 **And if anyone's curious how I know about all the weapons Chief has, I learned from IMFDB (Internet Movie Firearms Database).  
In the words of Sig from Jak & Daxter: "I LOVE WEAPONS!"  
**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Underground Temple**

They got up and head further in, finding a few parked train cars.

" **Lara, are you okay?** " Jacob's voice asked from the radio.

"Yes," she answered. "We're at the base of the old Soviet mill..."

" **I'm making my way to the mine entrance at the top of the facility,** " Jacob said. " **Can you meet me there?** "

"We're on our way," she answered.

They headed in further, past the train cars, climbed some wooden crates onto a platform.

They climbed up a ladder and jumped across to another building. Lara looked like she was about to slip, but luckily, the Chief caught her.

"Thank you," she said.

He nodded and pulled her up.

They entered a room with some bunk-beds that cages around them.

"Caged... like they were animals," Lara surmised.

"The levels of cruelty that humans are capable of always disgusts me," Chief said.

The climbed up a ladder to get higher, but they heard voices of some soldiers.

"Do we have a map of the facility?" one of them asked.

"Negative," another responded. "Even if we did, there's a lot of structural damage from the revolt."

"Gonna be dangerous, getting up higher," the first soldier said. "Weather and elements have taken their toll. So this is where the Soviets broke through?"

As they kept talking, Lara noticed some bottles of alcohol on a nearby table, along with some cloth.  
That gave her an idea, 'I can use this to make a Molotov Cocktail!'

"Psst!" Chief whispered. "Hey, come on, or we're gonna get jumped...!"

Lara nodded before the two of them began to sneak around with Tsume trotting after them.

"So is this where the Soviets broke through?" asked one of the soldiers.

"Yeah," answered the other. "First contact was in one of the mineshafts, and they shifted all operations to retrieval."

They crept a bit closer, then Lara put the cloth in the bottle and lit it.

Then she threw it in between the two soldiers that were talking. It hit the ground where they were standing, bursting into flames and lighting them both on fire!

They both screamed in agony as they were burned to death, then Chief shot the two remaining soldiers.

The next way forward was past a barrier of broken wood and cloth, which Lara burned away with a Molotov Cocktail.

They went past the copper chute to a huge jumping gap.

There was a rafter with ropes tied around it that they could to swing across.

Lara shot a rope arrow, held Tsume with her legs and swung across. Chief swung a rope that held a grappling hook, which hooked to the rafter, then he swung across.

Now they were on some wooden platforms along a bit of the mountain, taking them closer to the top of the mill.

They walked over the platforms, then had to balance on some beams of wood and jump to a rock wall.

They climbed up till they were on another platform of the mill.

"Shh...!" Chief shushed as he pointed ahead, where they could hear a soldier talking to Konstantin via radio.

" **Yeah, looks like we found a jackpot up here. All sorts of artifacts, and it matches the description of the Soviet intel. Yeah, this is where they broke into the ruins.** "

Chief quietly snuck up behind the soldier as he walked out with his back turned.

" **Any sign of the escaped prisoners?** " asked Konstantin.

"Not sure," said the soldier. "Can't really see, but..."

 **"Understood,** " said Konstantin. " **I'll radio the forward teams to be prepared.** "

Before the soldier could answer, Chief covered his mouth and stabbed him through the chest.

They then jumped to a ladder suspended from the ceiling, climbed up and along the building till they came to a zipline.

They rode it, and another one, then landed next to an old generator.

"There they are! Open fire!"

Several soldiers appeared and started shooting at them.

Chief quickly dispatched them with his MP5SD3.

"It's clear," he said before he, Lara, and Tsume kept moving, only to run into more soldiers. They tried to shoot back, but then a Molotov Cocktail was thrown at them!

"SCATTER!" Chief yelled before they dispersed while the bottle burst into flames once it hit the floor. Lara tried to shoot one with her bow, but she had to dodge another cocktail before she could aim. As for Tsume, he was darting about, trying to avoid the bullets, when he suddenly yowled in pain upon feeling one graze his shoulder.

"Tsume!" Lara exclaimed, then threw a cocktail at the guy who shot him, burning him alive. "Nobody hurts my friends!"

Then she and Chief dispatched the rest with their rifles.

They climbed higher up and swung across another gap with a roped rafter.

" **Lara, are you there?** " Jacob's voice called from the radio. ***pant, pant*** " **I'm pinned down Lara, you have to get out-** "

Static cut him off.

"Jacob? ...Shit!" Lara cursed.

They moved further and found some soldiers inside the machine room. The three soldiers were standing near a generator and a big puddle of oil. Chief pulled out a Colt M1911A1 pistol and shot the puddle, causing it to ignite and catch on fire, burning the three soldiers alive.

What they didn't expect was that the rest of the area lit on fire as well!

Lara shoved him a bit, "Are you crazy?!"

"Yes," Chief replied, calmly.

Lara only sneered at him while Tsume seemed to snicker a bit.

They ran past the fire on the floor to another barrier of wood and cloth.

There was a leaking gas pipe above it, so Chief shot it, causing a small explosion that burned away the barrier.

"Go!" Chief shouted as he and Lara kept running, shooting down soldiers in their path.

They eventually made it almost to the top when some wood collapsed from the ceiling, blocking their way back.

They quickly shot any soldiers that were in the room, but then two more came in.

These guys had military armor and metal shields, like SWAT cops would use.

"I have visual confirmation," One of them said.

" **Kill them, now!** " Konstantin's voice said from his earpiece.

"Yes, sir," the soldier answered.

"Fan out! We have them surrounded!" said another.

"Well, what now?" asked Lara.

Chief tossed a bottle of alcohol and charged at one of the soldiers. When he got close enough, the soldier swung his stick at him, but he dodged and drew his pistol.

The soldier had a mask and helmet to protect himself, but Chief stuck it in one of the eye-holes, and fired, splattering his brains out!

Lara made another cocktail and threw it at the other soldier's feet, lighting him on fire.

Another soldier came in, but some flaming wood fell on him, also lighting him on fire.

They headed the rest of the way to the top of the mill, where they could see the entrance to the mine just ahead of them.

"Through there!" Chief said. "Let's hurry!"

"Come on, Tsume!" Lara called as she and Tsume followed after Chief.

Lara shot a rope arrow, creating a zipline that they rode down, to another one, which took them to the broken bridge at the mine's entrance.

They landed by a military truck, then a Trinity soldier ran at them, but then fell to the ground from getting knifed in the back, which was thrown by Jacob.

"We seem to be making a habit of saving each other," he said.

"Thanks," Lara said as she, Tsume and Chief walked over to him. "I'm glad you're okay. Is that the way through?"

"Yes," Jacob answered. "There will be more of them inside. You don't have to do this."

Lara chuckled a bit, "Can't get rid of me that easily. I still need some answers."

"Then there's no time to waste," Jacob said.

Soon, the group entered the mine. While Jacob was using a signal flare, Lara used a glowstick.

"This path will take us all the way through the mountain," said Jacob. "My people used these ways until the Soviets arrived and began digging."

"What did they find down here?" asked Lara.

"Enough to make them curious," Jacob answered. "They used explosives and machines to dig deeper, did quite a lot of damage. Many of the old paths collapsed, but it's safe now." A resounding explosion shook the tunnel. "Or, it used to be."

"That doesn't sound good," Lara stated.

"Trinity must've found the old mining equipment," Chief realized. "They're trying to finish what the Soviets started."

"And there's no other way through?" Lara asked.

"I'm afraid not... not anymore," Jacob said. "This complicates things."

Suddenly, the group felt another tremor.

"...I think we're in trouble," said Chief.

They squeezed through some metal structuring to a chute, hearing Trinity soldiers talk above them.

"What's the problem? We're behind schedule."

"Hold on, the wires here are corroded, but I think I can bypass it. Almost ready..."

More resounding explosions shook the tunnel, and they were occurring more frequently.

"They're going to bring the whole place down..." Lara said.

"The Soviets destroyed most of the old paths," Jacob said.

They climbed through a wooden blockage, but then the tunnel shook again!

Noticing rocks were about to fall, Jacob threw Lara ahead. The rocks fell, trapping Jacob, Tsume and Chief!

"Jacob, Tsume, Chief!" Lara exclaimed.

"Find Sofia!" Jacob called. "Tell her Trinity is here!"

"GO!" Chief yelled.

"Be careful!" Lara called as she ran off, dodging falling rocks and explosions the whole way!

She ran by a giant excavator as the tunnel caved in around her. One burst of flame from one of the excavator's exhausts blew her against the wall, making her ears ring and giving her a slight concussion, but she pressed on

She sprinted further till she made it to what looked like the exit, but the walls started closing in on her!

But she managed to make it out before they collapsed!

Lara panted, holding her still aching head, "Thank God I'm not claustrophobic." She took out her radio, "Jacob? Jacob, are you there, can you hear me?" No answer, only static. "Please don't be dead Tsume, or Chief."

With that, Lara continued on...by herself.

There were some soldiers trying to get an old elevator working.

Hiding behind a wooden crate, she shot the one that was trying to get the elevator working with an arrow to the head. This alerted the other two, whom she quickly dispatched with her rifle.

She went over to try the elevator, but halfway down, it got stuck.  
"Damn it. Now what?"

She climbed up to where the one guy was checking the wiring, finding a desk with a holstered combat knife... just like the one Owen had.  
"I can use this to cut the ropes."

Then she looked up and saw some debris blocking the path upwards, then looked to the broken elevator, and next to that was a wall of ice.

"...That'll work," she said before she climbed up the slope, cut the rope that was holding the debris, then went up and cut the elevator ropes down. Then, she went back down, climbed up on top of the elevator, and then jumped onto the ice.

She climbed up, then jumped over to the outside of the elevator shaft and grabbed onto a board nailed to it.

She moved along and around the shaft till she got to the next level.

She went through the tunnel that led out, stepping into the remains of an old temple. The walls were crumbling away, the whole room was even tilted to the left, and there were dozens of bodies lying around.

"Could this be part of the lost city?" Lara wondered.

That's when she found documents nearby, which she picked up and read.  
" _Freedom Station Operational Report - 17 September 1970_

 _At your earliest convenience, please acknowledge these communiques. We have received no directives since the discovery of the ruins._

 _Examination of the artifacts and scrolls recovered from the site continue. As impossible as it may seem, it appears we may have discovered the ruins of the legendary city of Kitezh._

 _There are also numerous references to some kind of messianic figure. If I'm interpreting the text correctly, he was a prophet who fled Byzantium sometimes in the 10th century. The inscriptions say that he carried with him an artifact of great power. For the time being, I have suspended normal mining operations. It is my intent to discover the truth behind this mysterious prophet._ "

"Hmm..." Lara hummed, thoughtfully. "He mentions artifacts, as well as the natives...Jacob's people?"

She walked up some steps, then found herself in a giant ice cave. There were even more ruins around.

She went left, finding more soldiers investigating.  
"Looks like Ana was right about the Lost City, the Source has to somewhere down here..."

She looked up to the soldiers, who still seemed unaware of her presence before she put together a smoke grenade, then threw it, causing it to explode in a cloud of smoke. The impact killed one of the soldiers before she ran to finish off the other by choking him to death with her bow, then she ran and took cover behind a busted brick wall.

She made a cocktail and threw it at a soldier that was standing near a still intact wall, and threw it at him, burning him alive.

This alerted the other soldiers nearby, who quickly took care of with her rifle, till there was one more, running towards her, dodging her shots.

But this soldier made a terrible choice coming at her head-on, since she introduced his head to her pickaxe.

"Take that, you bastard!" she shouted as she finished him off, then sighed in relief while wiping his blood from her face. "That takes care of them. Now..."

She then spotted another book nearby, set on a table that was in front of a mosaic wall before she went up and began to read it.  
"F _reedom Station Operational Report - 4 November 1970_

 _Comrades, it is imperative that you respond to my communiques. We are now in dire need of supplies and reinforcements. A full revolt is in progress and the prisoners now control the excavation site and surrounding facilities._

 _In retribution, I have ordered mass executions of prisoners from the native population. With any luck, these rebels will lay down their arms and surrender to save their own countrymen._ "

"The people of the valley revolted," Lara said, "But the Soviets only ground their boots down, harder."

She heard what sounded like a machine running, so she ran toward it.

It was some kind of hoist with a rope attached to it. There was a huge pit between where she was and a big door on the other side of the cave.

"They were trying to break open the door," Lara realized, as the machine lost power.

Just then, she felt a tremor, causing rocks to crumble. Realizing that she only had one way of escape, Lara climbed onto the rope and began to shimmy her way across as rocks began to fall down around her.

Luckily for her, she managed to make it across to the old ruins.

She went over to the door to get a closer look,  
"I can use these other cables to rip open the door."

The first one she followed was to her right, which lead down to part of a broken bridge made of bricks that was tilted downward.

The mechanism the cable was attached to was in the back of a truck that was just barely hanging over the edge of the bridge.

She used the cable like a zip line before she grabbed onto the truck, which almost fell from the added weight before she climbed up over the edge. She noticed a cart full of bricks in front of the truck and there was another in the way. The cart in front of the truck had roped tied around, and there was a winch up ahead: the kind that one would have to operate manually.

First, Lara pushed one of the carts out of the way, then used a rope arrow to attach the other cart to the winch. After she cranked it, she cut the cart loose, causing it to crash into the truck, which fell off and ripped open the door, but not completely. Plus, the bridge ended up collapsing from the truck falling, forcing Lara to scramble and grab onto a ledge.

Another truck and support beam collapsed from the bridge as she pulled herself up.

She then headed to behind some ice to find a way back over to where she was.

It seemed that that was all she needed to get into the ruins, so she made her way in.

Lara used her glowstick to light the way, but as she reached what looked like a chapel, she found that she stumbled upon more Trinity soldiers.

"It's her!" shouted one of them.

"FIRE!" yelled as they began to shoot at Lara, who ducked down and took cover, then she began to shoot at them with her assault rifle.

Once they were all taken out, a smoke grenade went off and a big white light covered the exit.

More soldiers came in on ropes, but Lara immediately started shooting at them.

She had been through tricks like this before. In fact, she had actually trained herself for things such as this, in case she ever had a run-in with these kinds of people, again. She would close her eyes, sense where the enemy was coming from based on the vibrations from their movements, and then fire.

They were all dead before the light died down.

She made her way to the exit and turned left, seeing an ice wall that she could climb up.

As Lara climbed over the ledge, she made her way down a flight of stairs and found a chest inside a chamber. She looked inside and she saw an old sword with a broken blade.

"A gold sword hilt inlaid with jewels," said Lara as she inspected it. "This belonged to a Byzantine noble."  
That's when she noticed the broken blade.  
"Hmm...the blade snapped off at the base. Did this happen in battle?"

She moved on, finding another wall of ice to climb, which brought her back up to the first chapel area.

But now there were a few lit flares on the ground, and more soldiers stormed in.

One had some armor and a shield, one was up on a broken bridge throwing grenades, and finally a regular grunt with a rifle.

Lara knew that the armored soldier would be trouble, so she had to find a way to take him out first and then the others.

Quickly taking cover, she made a shrapnel grenade and threw it at him.

It wasn't enough to kill him, but his head was now exposed, at least, thus Lara was able to shoot him in the head.

Then she quickly took out the regular grunt and the guy throwing grenades.

She then climbed up a rope ladder that took her up to the bridge, and made her way to where the other cable winch was.

As she grabbed onto a giant old crane, the cave shook again before a giant basin was pulled off of a cliff, which nearly pulled open the door, but not quite. She needed to bash it in with something.

Realizing she could use the basin, Lara looked around and spotted the other winch. She dropped down to the ground, attached a rope from the bell to the winch, then began to crank to the winch with her pickaxe. The basin went under a waterfall, quickly filling it up and causing the door to shake.

"That did it!" Lara exclaimed.

The basin gained more weight as it filled with water, till it pulled the winch over the ledge, making it fall and ripping the door open!

Before Lara could celebrate, the cave shook violently and rocks fell from the ceiling. She quickly climbed up the crane and ran up it to reach the ledge where the door was.

She jumped from it, making it to the other side, but almost slid off! Luckily, she managed to grab the edge and pull herself up.

She then sprinted to the big exit as the whole place collapsed around her. She jumped through the doorway just as it caved in.

"Too many close calls, Lara," she said to herself.

She got up and walked inside. It looked like an underground cathedral, there was giant statue of a man with long hair and a beard, holding a staff.

"This statue must be the Immortal Prophet..." Lara said in awe.

She looked down and some murals on the ground, depicting the Prophet and his people.

"And this," she said as she took a closer look. "It shows the exodus of the Prophet and his people through the deserts of Syria." She stopped in front of another mural, showing the Prophet and his people finding a valley, and then building a city with the resources they find. "They settled in a hidden valley and built a great city...Kitezh."

She walked further, finding a mural showing the Prophet knighting a group of warriors.  
"To protect the city and its people, the Prophet raised an army of warriors... But what is this showing?"

The next mural showed one of the knights presenting something to the Prophet. It looked like a glowing dodecahedron (Twelve sided dice).  
"It's not the Divine Source they're holding. It's something else... something else... but what?" She crouched down to look at some faded writing on the mural.

' _And his warriors forged for him an Atlas. That the Prophet might always know his city and its secrets,_ ' it read.

Lara gasped, "A map of the city... it could show the way to the Divine Source." She took one last look at the statue, then turned to leave.

As she walked out, she couldn't help but say, "It's a wonder this place is still standing."

The only way out was swimming through water.

Taking a deep breath, Lara dived into the water and kicked her legs as she swam through the cavern. As she swam farther, she felt her lungs begin to tighten. Thankfully, she found a place to come up for air. After taking a moment to catch her breath and let her body depressurize, she took in another breath and dove in again.

There was a fork in the path, this time, but she didn't have time to think on it, so she swam to the left before she came up for air again, and she saw some light up ahead.

It was definitely an exit that lead outside, and the air was warmer.

* * *

 **Chief is one crazy bastard! XD**

 **Read and review, please!**


	10. Chapter 9: Geothermal Valley & Reunion

**Here comes the moment everyone's been asking for!**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Geothermal Valley & Reunion**

Heading outside, Lara saw some more ruins, along with some red flags tied to the walls.

The area was a bit misty and rainy, too. Nonetheless, Lara trekked onward, finding some arrows to replenish her supply along the way. She climbed up to the top of the ruins before she saw a rope leading to some pit. She used her pickaxe to zip line down before she landed in a puddle of water.

She looked around and found herself in more ruins...but it wasn't just that. She could see a mysterious figure, standing on top of the ruins, aiming at her with a bow and arrow, and before she realized it, more people were coming inside, surrounding her...and one of them was Sofia.

"Stop right there!" she said.

Lara held up her hands, "Easy, easy! You know I'm not with Trinity."

"Why should we believe you?" Sofia questioned.

"I escaped with one of yours," Lara said. "A man named Jacob."

Sofia looked around, "Where is he now?"

"We were together, but we got separated in the mines," Lara explained.

"She killed him!" one of men accused.

"No!" Lara argued. "No, no, no, no..."

"Jacob would never trust an outsider," Sofia said.

"Please, listen!" Lara pleaded. "I'm not your enemy!"

"I warned you," Sofia brought out her bow and aimed an arrow at her. "You should have left."

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS, NOW!" A familiar voice shouted. Lara turned to see Chief run in, along with Tsume! Chief aimed his rifle at them.

Sofia's eyes widened a bit, "You... you're the one who saved me..."

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!" Chief repeated.

"You first!" Sofia said. "Perhaps I was wrong to trust you."

"Sofia!" Jacob's voice shouted, walking in. "Enough! You too, Owen."

"...Owen...?" Lara asked as she approached Chief, who looked at her before he sighed and he took off his goggles and ski-mask...revealing the incredibly handsome face, dirty blonde hair, and ocean blue eyes of the man she missed so much: Owen Taylor.

"...Hi, Lara," he said. "It's...been a while, huh?"

Lara didn't speak...she was too stunned to speak...and even if she could, what would she even say?

Sofia ran over to Jacob and hugged him, "Father! I thought I'd lost you."

Jacob smiled, then turned to Lara, "I'm glad you made it out of there. Forgive Sofia, she is... cautious."

"In her position, I'd be the same way," Lara said.

"But there is such a thing as being too cautious," Owen commented.

Sofia shrugged sheepishly, then asked her father, "What did you find out?"

"Trinity is coming in force," Jacob said. "We must prepare."

"And them?" Sofia asked, nodding in Lara, Owen and Tsume's direction.

"They're friends," Jacob answered. "On my word, no harm will come to them."

"These ruins..." Lara said, looking around. "We must be near the Prophet's Lost City."

"Come, we do not have much time," Jacob said, changing the subject. "Prepare the weapons stores, secure the battlements. Go! Now! They're almost here, and we're outnumbered."

"The children and elders are vulnerable," One of the men said.

"Get them into the catacombs," Jacob told him. "Light the fires - the valley must be alerted."

Lara, Owen and Tsume followed after him, finally getting a full view of the valley.

It was...too beautiful for words. Trees and tents as far as the eye could see and a grand view of a distant lake.

One of Jacob's people fired a flaming arrow at a pile of logs, using it as a beacon.

"...Incredible...!" Lara whispered.

"Yeah..." Owen agreed.

"Sofia," Jacob said. "Muster our fighters, then meet me in the upper village."

Sofia nodded, "Don't disappear again, father."

Jacob smiled at her as she walked away, "There is much to do. If we had more time..."

"Later," Lara told him. "For now, we'll do whatever we can to help."

Jacob nodded and walked away.

Once he was a good distance away,  
"...Don't get me wrong; I'm extremely happy to see you," Lara said. "But, why did you come? I thought you didn't care about the Divine Source..."

"I don't," Owen said. "I came for you. ...But I almost didn't. Took Tommy, Tsume, Hana and the pups to get me off my ass."

Lara put her hands on her hips, then turned to Tsume, looking like a scolding mother,  
"And you said he wasn't here."

Tsume folded his ears down and whimpered.

"I told him to say I wasn't here if you asked," Owen defended him. "It allowed me to be more sneaky."

Lara nodded, understanding.

"...I was surprised to see you still had it..." Owen inquired.

"What?" she asked.

"The ring," he replied.

Lara gasped before she pulled her engagement ring out of her pocket.  
"...Well...I just..." she said before she looked up at him. "...I couldn't just...throw it away..."

"That's another reason I came back," Owen said. "We aren't married, yet, but there IS the whole marriage vow thing..."

Lara nodded, "For better or worse..."

"In sickness and in health..." Owen continued.

"And this is my sickness..." Lara muttered.

Owen couldn't help chuckling at that, and even Lara laughed a little while Tsume sat nearby, smiling warmly at the two.

"...I'm sorry, Owen..." Lara said. "I'm so very sorry..."

"For what?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer. He just wanted to hear her say it.

"...You were right," Lara said. "I was...obsessed...but only because I wanted to know so badly what it was my Father was looking for. I'm close, now...but...still..." She then sighed. "I don't blame you if you never forgive me."

"I came because I knew you were in over your head," Owen said. "And, we can't let Trinity get their hands on the Divine Source. When we find it, if Jacob permits, I'll destroy it."

"Destroy it?!" asked Lara. "But...but Owen-"

"Hey, would you rather have it in the hands of those two maniacs?!" Owen asked. "Need I remind you that one of them had you fooled all these years!"

Lara opened her mouth to speak, but then looked away.

"I was shocked about Ana too," Owen added. "But I know that as long as it exists, she, Konstantin and Trinity aren't gonna stop coming after it, which means these people will always be in danger."

Lara stayed silent, contemplating everything he told her.

" **Lara, Owen?** " Jacob's voice called from her radio. " **I'm sorry if Sofia was... less than welcoming.** "

"I understand," Lara said. "I'm just glad you were there to vouch for me."

" **My people have spent decades fighting outsiders,** " he replied. " **It's not an easy habit to break. See if you can lend a hand with the preparations. A little hard work would go a long way towards building trust.** "

"We'll see what we can do," Owen said.

They spent the next couple hours helping around the village. Gathering hardwood branches for arrows, deer skin, boar meat and mushrooms for food, and delivering them to the guard-towers. They even destroyed some reconnaissance drones Trinity had sent out.

Then, they headed over to where Sofia was explaining the battle-plan.

"They'll likely come from the air," Sofia said as Lara and Owen stood with the rest of the villagers. "Jacob is assembling fighters in the upper village to draw their attention there. The children and those too old to fight will be safely hidden in the Acropolis catacombs. I will go there once things are in hand here."

"You said they were heavily armed," said one of the men. "How can we expect to beat them?"

"The fight will not be won in open combat," said Sofia. "They will hit us hard and fast and we will take losses. They hope to crush us in their initial assault, but we will turn their eagerness into our advantage. This will be a long engagement. If we hope to survive, we must wear them down, slowly, strategically...we will bleed them from a hundred cuts until they have nothing left. Only then will we be victorious. For now, we light the fires. Warn the others in the valley. Today, we win by surviving."

With that, everyone left.

" **Lara, Owen, I could use your help,** " Jacob's voice said from the radio. " **Our people are spread thin across the valley. If you light the signal tower, they'll know that the danger is imminent.** "

"We'll do what we can do..." Lara answered.

" **Once the fire is lit, they'll know what to do,** " Jacob said.

"That tower, the furthest away, right?" asked Lara.

" **That's the one,** " Jacob replied.

"Do you have what's needed to make fire arrows?" Owen asked.

"Shit... no," Lara cursed. "I left that at home."

"Well, I came prepared," Owen put his pack down and got out an oil flask, made out of leather. "This way, we won't have to climb up."

"Oh, thanks Owen," Lara said happily, taking the flask. She made a fire arrow and shot it at the tower, lighting it on fire.

" **Thank you,** " Jacob's voice said. " **Our people have been warned... that should give them time to evacuate. Meet me in the upper village, I'm gathering our forces here.** "

"Roger," Owen answered, so they began to head that way.

As they made their way to Jacob's location, they saw some choppers flying towards the village.

"Jacob, helicopters are headed your way!" Lara warned him.

" **Get here as fast as you can!** " Jacob replied.

" **Surrender at once,** " said the helicopter pilot via a bullhorn. " **Resistance will be met with deadly force. Put down your weapons or you will be shot.** "

" **Get behind the barricades!** " Jacob shouted to the others. " **Move! Move!** "

Then, Lara and Owen could hear gunshots.

" **Look out! Stay under cover!** " Jacob shouted. " **Pull back! Stay together!** "

"We have to hurry!" Lara said.

They swam through a small bog, under a sunken cabin.

" **If you do not cease fire, we will kill you all,** " The helicopter pilot warned. " **You have 30 seconds.** "

"What bullshit!" Owen said. "Even if they surrendered, they'd still kill them!"

"Which is why we have to stop them!" Lara replied. "Trinity is nothing but ruthless monsters! They're like the Solarii, but worse! They're more organized!"

Once they were out of the bog, they crouched behind some plants as they kept moving.

The buildings ahead of them was on fire, and Jacob and a couple villagers were on their knees with their hands behind their heads. One Trinity soldier pacing behind them.

Lara and Owen reached for their pistols, but Jacob saw them and shook his head, signaling them to wait.

The soldier held his shotgun at one of the villager's heads,  
"Where is the Divine Source?!"

The villager didn't answer, so the soldier shot him in the head.

Then he aimed his gun at another villager.

"Tell me!" he demanded.

"Stop! Don't hurt anyone else!" Jacob shouted, only for the soldier to bash him in the head with his gun and prepare to shoot him, next, only for the villager from earlier to suddenly speak up while Lara, Owen, and Tsume took cover behind some barrels.

"Wait! Wait!" he cried. "There's...there's a map...the Atlas! It'll show you the way!"

The soldier pushed Jacob to the ground and then pointed his gun at the villager.

"Okay," he said. "Tell me about this Atlas."

Jacob looked up and saw Lara and Owen, who both nodded, causing him to nod back before he grabbed the soldier's gun and shot him!

He then tossed it over to Lara as she, Owen and Tsume ran over.

Lara caught it and Owen got out his own shotgun. They blasted away any soldier they saw as they kept moving through the village.

" **We're under fire at the edge of the village!** " Jacob's voice exclaimed from the radio. " **If you can hear me, we need your help!** "

" **Please no, wait!** " A female voice replied.

All around them was nothing but fire and smoke, but still, they kept going.

" **Hostiles in that structure!** " a voice said from the chopper. " **Stand back, we got this!** "

They kept moved, blasting away any more soldiers that came after them.

" **Do not let them escape,** " the helicopter pilot said. " **Shoot the runners!** "

Out of nowhere, a villager ran out of the smoke, and he was on fire! He collapsed to the ground, then a soldier carrying a flame thrower, a gas mask, armor and fuel tanks on his back stepped out of the smoke.

"Great," Owen lamented. "Firefly without the wings."

"I think we're in trouble," said Lara before the soldier began to shoot fire from his flamethrower. "GET DOWN!"

Lara, Owen, and Tsume took cover behind some crates, but they soon caught on fire and they were forced to run.

"It's no use trying to hide from him!" Owen shouted. "Everything around here works to his benefit!"

"...I have an idea!" Lara said as she looked at the soldier. "Keep him distracted for me!"

Owen nodded before he ran out into the soldier's view.  
"Hey! Over here!" he shouted. "Bet you can't get me!"

"Wanna bet?" the soldier asked as he shot his flamethrower at Owen, who ducked down to the floor. While he was busy, however, Lara snuck around behind him and aimed her pistol at his firetanks.

"Steady," she whispered. "Keep him steady, Owen..."

Then she carefully pulled the trigger while Owen dodged another stream of fire.

"OWEN! GET BACK!" Lara shouted before she took the shot. Owen gasped before he jumped away, trying to get as far as possible. As for the soldier, the bullet ended up hitting his tanks, which exploded, setting him on fire!

He screamed, trying to put himself out, but he collapsed from the pain.

The helicopter flew overhead, with the pilot saying over the radio,  
" **We're bugging out. Withdraw and regroup at the drop.** "

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the Soviet Installation, Konstantin stood inside a church, looking like he was praying.

" **We've been overrun by natives,** " A soldier told him via radio. " **Croft is with them... and that 'Punisher' guy we've learned is actually Croft's lover, Owen Taylor... several casualties... men are dead and scattered...** "

Konstantin picked up a small pew and threw it across the room, yelling in anger.

Ana, who had been sitting in one of the pews closest to the entrance/exit to the church, stood and walked over to her fuming brother.

"We should have killed her," he exclaimed. "And now her ex has returned, along with that wolf! I thought he dumped her?!"

"Apparently he loves her more than we thought," Ana said. "And now that they're together again, they'll be nearly unstoppable. You, on the other hand, have nothing to show for your efforts. Perhaps they'll succeed where you're failing."

"I will not fail!" Konstantin barked.

"Trinity will step in if you do," said Ana, "And you know what that means? I'm expendable. They have no interest in my survival. I need the power of the Source!" She then went into another coughing fit, causing Konstantin to put a hand on her back.

"And you will have it," he said. "Don't lose faith, Ana. This is God's will. Our success is inevitable."

"...Please...just find it," Ana told him...sadly. "My time is running out."

With that, she turned and walked out of the chapel, leaving Konstantin to turn back around and continued praying on his knees.  
"I've come so far, I've endured so much. These final barriers you have set before me... These sins you have forced me to commit... they must have a purpose. Only you can show me the way. Grant me strength to continue, for her. For you, for Trinity. Please... show me the way."

It was clear to anyone that Konstantin was insane, believing that God would condone his actions or give him guidance.

He opened his hands, and blood poured from the bullet wounds in his palms from how tightly he'd pressed his hands together. But, he took it as instruction from the Lord.

"Then blood it shall be." He stood up and walked out of the church.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back in the village, everyone was recuperating from the attack...but not everybody got out, unscathed. Houses were still burning. People were groaning in pain. Dead bodies were being carried around.

As Jacob looked around, he saw a man leaning against a tree...the man who attempted to tell one of the soldiers of Trinity about the "Atlas". He was bleeding from his forehead and he was coughing. Jacob ran over to him and grabbed his shoulders.

He knew that this man would never really tell Trinity about the Atlas. He only said it to buy Jacob time to fight back. For that...he knew he could not let this man die.

"Stay with me," Jacob told him. "Stay with me!"

Nearby, Lara, Owen, and Tsume helped one of the injured...but they couldn't help feeling guilty.

"I'm sorry," Lara apologized. "Your people don't deserve this."

"It is our chosen path... our duty" Jacob said. "It's never been easy."

"We know what it's like to lose people," Owen said. "Trinity's not gonna stop."

"No, they won't," Jacob said. "They have many resources."

"And the Atlas?" Lara asked.

"It's an ancient map to the old city, but Trinity won't find it at that tower," Jacob answered, pointing at a tower in the distance. "Many of my people live in those ruins. They won't be prepared for what's coming."

"We can help them, Jacob," Lara said, with determination.

Jacob paused, then asked, "Would you do this for us, or for that which you seek?"

"Right now, they're one in the same," Lara answered.

Owen shook his head in disappointment.

"I'll be back with reinforcements, after I've tended to the wounded," Jacob said.

Lara nodded her head before Jacob headed inside a cabin while Lara and Owen went to help anyone else who was hurt.

"You okay?" asked Owen a young woman that was holding her shoulder. "Where does it hurt most?"

"Just my shoulder," said the woman. "I dislocated it while running away."

Owen put his hand on her shoulder while Lara gave the woman a piece of bark.

"Bite onto it," she told her. "Trust me."

The woman nodded before Owen held up her arm.

"1...2...3!" he counted before he popped her shoulder back into place, causing her to scream.

"That better?" asked Owen.

"Yes...thank you," said the woman.

"Owen, let's go check in with Jacob and Sofia," said Lara.

"Right," Owen replied as he and Lara headed into the cabin where Jacob was talking with Sofia about their next move.

* * *

 **Owen's back!**

 **I think we can all agree that Konstantin is insane...**

 **Read and review, please!**


	11. Chapter 10: Saving Sofia

**So, Owen's back, but it doesn't seem like he and Lara are on the same page.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Saving Sofia**

As Jacob was talking with Sofia, Lara found a scroll on a table before she opened it and read it.  
" _Fires still rage in the outer districts. The last of the wooden buildings will be consumed by nightfall. The heart of our city is gone, buried beneath the ice. I can take some small solace in the fact that the Mongol invaders were killed, alongside the Prophet's warriors who died to save us._

 _And the Prophet himself... no one has seen him since the morning after the siege ended. We need his wisdom, now more than ever. We do not have enough food to feed those who survived. Some believe the worst is over, but I fear that is not the case._ "

"...When the city of Kitezh fell," Lara began, "The inhabitants were forced to go on without him..."

Then, they left the cabin and the small camp, and headed over to some ruins.

The ruins led them to a big cave entrance, and inside was a giant door.

Walking through it, they found some supplies for hiding out, but no people.

"Jacob, it's a mess up here," Lara said. "There's no sign of your people."

" **Sofia might have taken them into the catacombs beneath the tower,** " Jacob said from the radio.

"All right, we'll look there," said Owen.

" **We're almost done evacuating the wounded here,** " said Jacob. " **I'll join you soon.** "

With that, the radio went silent while Lara, Owen, and Tsume headed deeper into the catacombs.

They climbed up rock walls, made a zipline to climb up with rope arrows, and swam through some water till they came to an overlook of the acropolis.

Unfortunately, a helicopter flew over their heads just as they got to the overlook of the acropolis.

"Hope we're not too late," Lara said as she ran toward it, Owen and Tsume following after her.

As they made their way down, Lara found another scroll.  
" _It has been months since the snows of the mountain buried the heart of Kitezh. We sent men to search for survivors or food, but none have returned. Sounds drift up from the glaciers, but if people still live entombed inside, I do not know. It could be the shifting ice, but I will be the first to admit, it sounds like the voices of men._

 _Perhaps the ghosts of the Prophet's warriors still patrol the frozen streets. We will send no more of our people inside. We have to accept that the Prophet, and the city, are lost to us and that we are now on our own._ "

"...The survivors of the fall of Kitezh had to abandon the heart of the city," Lara said, sadly.

They moved on, finding discarded weapons and empty tents everywhere. Dead bodies, villagers and soldiers alike lying everywhere as well.

In the distance, they could hear more fighting and gunfire

They kept moving till they heard voices up ahead, so they hid and moved closer to see what was going on.

"The courtyard's clear! What do you want us to do with these prisoners?"

" **Take 'em out!** " said the helicopter pilot as it flew overhead...and when Lara, Owen, and Tsume looked, they gasped upon seeing more of Trinity's soldiers, holding some people at gunpoint!

"Don't shoot!" cried a man. "We will-"

Before he could say more, he and the others were soon shot in the head, execution style. Lara was about to scream, but Owen covered her mouth.

Then he snuck up behind one of the soldiers and snapped his neck, while Lara snuck up on another and stabbed him in the head with her knife.

Tsume snuck up on another and bit his face off, then dragged his body out of site.

Owen then got out a purple colored grenade.

"Why's that purple?" Lara asked in a hushed tone.

"You'll see," Owen whispered back.

He pulled off the pin and threw it to the center of the courtyard. Sensing something coming, Tsume quietly scampered back over to his friends.

Hearing the grenade hit the ground, one of the soldiers went over to check it,  
"What the...?" He poked it with his rifle... no reaction. "Heh, guess it was a dud."

"Why's it purple though?" Another soldier asked.

The third one picked it up to look at it closer. When he turned it over, he saw a familiar skull and crossbones symbol,  
"Oh shit!"

Before he could even move to throw it away; the grenade exploded, killing the soldiers closest to it! The explosion also released a green smoke that caused the rest of the soldiers to cough violently and spasm. They eventually fell to their knees... dead.

"Poison smoke?" Lara guessed.

"Yep," Owen smirked. "Made 'em myself."

"It's amazing, what you do," Lara said. "Come on, let's get going."

They moved through the camp till they heard an explosion from a nearby wall that led underground.

"Let's move, the rest of them can catch up," A soldier said. "I don't wanna miss out on the hunt."

"Jeez, you're insatiable," Another soldier said.

While one of them had his back turned, Lara quickly shot him in the head with an arrow, then shot the other one once he was in range.

"I see you haven't lost your touch," Owen quipped.

Lara smiled, "Thanks. And you've gotten better with weapons. Which reminds me; where did you get all those guns?"

"My Uncle Davis was a soldier," Owen said. "He knows a guy."

Lara chuckled, "Good ol' Davis."

Owen smiled...feeling his chest warm up. It did feel good to see Lara again, and it felt good to see her laugh.

They headed into the underground tunnel, seeing some lit flares on the ground. Going further in, they found more soldiers.

"Hands in the air, now!"

"Drop it! Drop the gun!"

"Don't shoot! We will-"

More villagers that were taken hostage were killed.

"Cease fire! Goddammit, we need some of them alive!"

While one of the soldiers had his back turned, Lara shot him in the head, but luckily, nobody noticed.

"Plenty more further on," said one of the soldiers. "Come on, let's check his pockets."

As the soldiers looted the bodies of their hostages, Owen gave a signal to Tsume, who nodded before he silently snuck up on one of the soldiers and lunged at him from behind, sinking his teeth into his neck. The other soldiers gasped upon seeing him.

"Holy crap, there's a wolf in here!" shouted one of them, but before either of them could shoot, Lara ran up and grabbed one from behind while Owen grabbed the other.

"Wrong," Owen said. "There are THREE wolves."

"And the two-legged kind are the ones you should be more afraid of," Lara added before she slit the soldier's throat open with her pickaxe and Owen snapped the neck of the remaining one.

They ran towards the exit, which led back outside, but the floor exploded beneath them, making them fall.

"Ahh, dammit!" Lara cursed, her ears ringing.

Though disoriented, they heard two soldiers walk in.

"Hey wait, hold up! These bastards are resourceful. They might have set up some traps."

"Don't worry, I'll kill everything that moves."

"Just take it slow. Stay sharp."

Lara made a cocktail and threw it at their feet, lighting them both on fire.

The only way out was through a rectangular hole that they managed to squeeze through, and they heard more voices up ahead.

"All right, my friend. Your turn."

"I won't, tell you, ANYTHING."

Definitely a soldier questioning a villager.

"See, I believe you...that's why we're just gonna beat you until you stop breathing. That way, when I ask the next guy where the Atlas is, he'll know I'm serious."

Lara and Owen turned and nodded to each other, then the former shot the soldier in the back, taking the others by surprise!

"We're under attack!" shouted another soldier.

Owen quickly shot the remaining three soldiers, saving everyone.

Checking to see if everyone was alright, they saw Sofia kneeling over a dead man.

"Bastards," she cursed, then stood, holding her tied hands out. "Untie me. I'll kill every last one of them."

"Easy, Sofia," Lara said as she untied her bindings.

Sofia looked around at all of the dead people,  
"So much bloodshed. We're losing too many people."

"Maybe your people have sacrificed enough," Owen said.

"It's... all we've known," Sofia said solemnly. "I misjudged you, both of you." Hearing a slight whimper from Tsume, she chuckled a bit. "Okay, all three of you."

"Then tell us how we can help you," Lara asked.

"I've got to get the rest to safety, but the entrance to the catacombs is blocked," Sofia said, pointing to the wooden door that led out.

"We'll find a way to clear it," Lara said.

"Hey, Lara," said Owen as he pointed to a brick wall. "These bricks look a little loose."

Lara walked up to it before she used her pickaxe to break the wall apart before she, Owen, and Tsume slipped inside.

They made their way around and found a grate that showed the entrance to the escape route, but like Sofia said, it was blocked by rocks and wreckage.

"There it is," said Lara.

Spotting some weapon crates nearby, Owen went over to them and gathered some ammo and grenades.

He even gave some grenades to Lara, "Try these, Artemis."

Raising an eyebrow at the nickname at first, Lara realized what he was getting at. She took one of the grenades and attached it to one of her arrows, creating a grenade arrow.

She then used her bow to aim through the broken window that showed the blocked exit.  
"Get clear of the door!" she called to the villagers who were trying to move the wreckage.

They moved away, then Lara fired, the attached grenade exploded when it hit, destroying the blockage.

Soon, Sofia led everyone out. Even though some of them were limping, they were being helped by those who could walk.

"Thank you, Lara, Owen, Tsume," said Sofia. "They should be safe in the catacombs for now." She then stopped and looked at Lara. "...I know you seek the Divine Source...but my people will die to protect it."

"Your people are already dying," said Lara. "You can't protect it forever."

"We've lasted this long," Sofia countered. "But for now, I'm glad to have you three as allies."

One villager came over, "They're converging on the tower! We've still got people there!"

They all looked at the tower, which was on fire in several areas.

"Get the others to safety," Owen told her. "They'll need you."

Sofia nodded and ran off.

"...You really think it's still worth it, looking for the Divine Source?" asked Owen, but Lara didn't answer.

She ran up some steps that took her up an old building.

Tsume whimpered a bit.

"I know pal," Owen responded. "Somehow, we've gotta convince her to give this up."

They followed after her, going up more steps and shimmying across some wood. They jumped to an old bridge when the radio went off again.

" **Lara, Owen, I'm here!** " Jacob's voice called. " **But we're taking fire from the choppers! I need you to get Trinity's attention, any way you can!** "

"Leave it to us," Owen replied.

They jumped to the other side of the bridge, Lara used a grenade arrow to destroy some wreckage blocking the way forward, then they crawled under the broken wooden wall.

"Over here, we need your help!" A villager called, running over to them. But then he got shot!

More soldiers appeared, so Lara, Owen and Tsume engaged them.

Tsume jumped up and bit one soldier's groin, viciously ripping out his precious loins, then he went right for the face. As for Lara, she shot several more soldiers through their heads with her arrows, but she failed to see that a grenade had been thrown at her!

"LARA!" Owen yelled as he pulled her out of the way, just in time. Luckily, he didn't get hit, either.

"Thanks!" Lara said.

"Don't thank me, yet!" Owen shouted as they both took cover. When one soldier attempted to shoot them both, Tsume jumped up and bit his neck, killing him instantly.

Owen shot the last one with his pistol, then helped Lara to her feet.

She used a grenade arrow to destroy the blockage at the exit, then they headed up the steps.

They immediately opened fire on the soldiers they saw once they got to the top.

Once they were all dead, a helicopter flew overhead.

Some soldiers took shots at them from this wooden bridge ahead of them, but Lara shot an arrow at the red barrels next to the soldiers, blowing them and the bridge up.

"Come on!" Owen called as he, Lara, and Tsume kept running. There was fire and smoke everywhere and enemies tried to ambush them wherever they could, but they always shot them down before they kept going. Eventually, they stopped in what looked like a village square, where they saw some more of Trinity's soldiers being shot down.

"Jacob!" Lara called using the walkie-talkie. "It looks like we've got the upper hand!"

" **Good work,** " Jacob responded. " **Those choppers should be in range soon.** "

A chopper flew overhead, and was bombarded by some fireballs, causing it to crash!

"We did it!" Lara said.

All around them, they could hear the villagers cheering. But before they could join them...

"Lara, Owen, are you there?" Sofia's voice asked from the radio. She sounded frantic. "Trinity is swarming the tower. We're trapped in the catacombs beneath!"

"Damn it!" Owen cursed. "Just hold on... we're on our way!"

Before they left, Lara found what looked like a diary. She could see that it had been written by Sofia, so she took a moment to read it.  
" _Elias and I will attempt to reach the far hills, where the old bear lives. Trinity is still clustered below in the Soviet base. We will wait until the dead of night to go._

 _It is a great risk, but we know a battle is coming. We'll have need of the medicinal herbs that grow in those hills if we are to survive the coming struggle._ "

"They have to take great risks, just to have the basic necessities," Lara said. "These people are forged in hardship..."

"Lara!" Owen called. "Let's go!"

They moved on, running into another ambush of soldiers.

Owen threw a poison gas grenade to get rid of them all.

Once they were dead, they headed in further, finding more soldiers in a big chamber like area.

"This is Team 5, we're heading into the catacombs. Need some back up here."

 **"Got it. On our way,** " One soldier responded via radio.

There were only three soldiers, so this would be easy.

"I'll get the one in the middle," Owen whispered. "Lara, you get the one on the right and Tsume, get the one on the left."

"Consider it done," Lara nodded before she and Tsume went to their respective prey. Lara crept up behind the soldier before she grabbed him from behind and choked him to death with her bow, then dragged his body out of sight. Then Tsume jumped at his target with a skull-crushing bite, then dragged him away, too.

Owen snuck up on his guy and snapped his neck, then dragged him away.

More soldiers stormed in, but they were no match for the trio! All of them were quickly dealt with, including guys with armor and shields.

A little while later, Jacob and the rest of his people arrived.

"Jacob..." Lara walked over to him. "They're gone."

All the wounded were tended to, while the dead were mourned.

"I fear this battle is far from over," Jacob said, solemnly.

"Will you tell me more about this place?" Lara asked.

Jacob nodded, "You've earned that much. Come with me." He led that up to what was left of the tower that overlooked the mountains.  
"In ancient times, our Prophet brought the Divine Source to this valley. My ancestors built Kitezh to protect it from the outside world."

"To what end?" Lara asked. "What is the Divine Source, Jacob?"

"An artifact from a time long forgotten," Jacob answered. "We believe it holds a fragment of God's soul. Legend tells us those who beheld the Source were granted immortality, but others have always been drawn here, seeking its power." He gestured to a massive cathedral in the distance, surrounded by choppers.

"Trinity..." Owen said.

"They seek to spread their darkness across the world," Jacob said. "With the Source, their soldiers would be... unstoppable."

"Then help me find it... before they do!" Lara begged.

Jacob shook his head, "This is not your burden."

"Of course it is!" Lara argued. "My father died for this."

"You can't fill the emptiness inside you, Lara," Jacob said, with wisdom well beyond someone his age. "You can only set it free."

Lara was silent for a moment, but... "I'm going to find it. With or without you."

She then walked away.

Owen sighed angrily, "You... complete stubborn dumbass... WAKEUP ALREADY, LARA!"

* * *

 **Seriously Lara!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	12. Chapter 11: Confrontation

**Owen's arguing with Lara again! Hope it doesn't end badly.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Confrontation**

Lara gasped as Owen grabbed her shoulders.

"DON'T YOU REALIZE WHAT'S HAPPENING, HERE?!" he shouted. "YOU'RE OBSESSING OVER THIS, JUST LIKE YOUR FATHER DID!"

"WHAT CHOICE DO I HAVE?!" Lara questioned. "I HAVE TO FINISH WHAT HE STARTED, OWEN! EVERYTHING HE LEFT, HE LEFT FOR ME TO FINISH!"

"YOU DON'T HAVE TO FINISH IT!" Owen yelled. "DAMMIT, LARA, OPEN YOUR EYES! PEOPLE ARE GETTING KILLED OVER THIS KIND OF SHIT, AND IF YOU KEEP THIS UP, YOU'LL BE KILLED, TOO! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?! I CAN'T LOSE YOU, AGAIN!"

Lara gasped...while Owen sighed and put his hands down.

"...I can't...not again..." he whispered. "This whole thing made your father throw everything away that was important to him... and you're doing the same... This is why I left, why haven't you realized that?"

Lara's eyes went wide.  
"...Owen..." she whispered, causing Owen to hug her, tightly.

She hugged him back, crying.

"If I may..." Jacob, who had been completely silent through the whole exchange, finally spoke. "Look deep into your heart, Lara. Does finding the Source mean so much that you're willing to give up everything you love, including him? I know did your best to hide it, but your spirit was sad and broken before you realized he was here. Do you really want to push him away again?"

"...No...!" Lara said as she sobbed. "No...I don't want to lose him, again...!"

Owen held her face, "One thing we know for sure; we can't let Trinity get their hands on the Source."

Lara sobbed a bit, then nodded.

"Go," Jacob urged them. "Do whatever it takes to keep it way from them."

"The Atlas is in the cathedral," Sofia interjected. "In the archives below. But none of us can follow you there."

"Why?" Owen asked as Lara wiped her eyes.

"There are others," Sofia answered. "The Deathless Ones. They will kill any who trespass."

"They'll stop Trinity," Jacob said.

"We can't take that chance," Lara argued.

"I know," Jacob responded.

Sofia handed Lara and Owen some wire spools, "Take these. They'll help you reach the cathedral."

"Thanks, Jacob," said Owen. "Lara...let's go."

"Yes," Lara nodded...feeling her determination return anew.

They climbed rock walls and jumped to more cliffs.

With their new spools, they could now grapple to cliffs they couldn't reach.

As they kept moving, Sofia called them again from the radio...  
" **Lara, Owen, if you're headed to the cathedral, Trinity will be everywhere.** "

"I know," Lara responded. "That's why we have to stop them."

Tsume barked as he led them up another path.

Soon, they were outside, and they had found another campfire to sit and rest at.

"How you holdin' up?" Owen asked.

"I'll manage," Lara replied. "I've managed to get by, before..."

"Only because you had the rest of us," said Owen as he put his hand on his shoulder.

They jumped some more cliffs till they came to zipline that took them down to the ground.

There was a villager with a lantern standing by a stream.

"You're alive, good," he said when he saw them. "We got most of the wounded to safety, but the invaders returned. They've taken the upper village. There are more of us, down in the valley, organizing for our resistance. We'll take any extra hands we can get... If you're going back to the village... be careful."

Lara and Owen nodded before they and Tsume swam across the stream to the other side, hiding in some bushes from some more soldiers.

"I don't think we'll see much resistance from the natives," said one in a white ski mask. "Not after this."

"We'll probably catch a few more stragglers slinking around the woods, but yeah," said another in a black ski mask. "They're done."

While one strayed away from the others, Lara grabbed him and killed him before he could alert the others, then dragged him into the shrubs.

They snuck into another bush, where Lara shot one guy in the head.

This alerted the others, so they began to search around.

Tsume snuck up on one soldier and crushed his neck in his jaws.

Soon, they were all gone, giving them the chance to loot their bodies and pick up extra ammo, just in case.

They headed inside a shack, where they found another tape recorder.

This one was left by a soldier who betrayed Trinity,  
" _ **I've attached everything I've learned so far. Ana and Konstantin, they're in charge out here, but someone else is pulling the strings above them... someone with a lot of cash and the means to move it around.**_

 _ **I've narrowed down the source, but I'm having a hard time believing someone in the Vatican is running a private army. But all roads lead to Rome. Trust me, this sounds crazy even to me. But people have to know this. If I'm going to die for this, I want to be on the right side for once.**_

 _ **And Konstantin... I know you're probably reading this too. You might make me disappear, but you won't win here. And if I never get the chance to say it to your face... you're out of your fucking mind.**_ "

"Trinity will kill him for this..." Lara said. "I hope it was worth it."

"...So I guess Konstantin and Ana aren't the real leaders of Trinity," said Owen. "Figured as much. Always someone higher on the ladder."

They climbed out of an open window in the shack that led to the next area.

At that moment, a helicopter flew overhead, and Lara, Owen, and Tsume saw a few more armored soldiers that were very close by, forcing all three of them to hide.

" **The hired guns can finish the sweep down here,** " said the pilot. " **We're needed back at base camp.** "

"Roger," said one of the soldiers. "We're clear."

Two of them walked away, while one was standing against one of the shacks, having a smoke.

Lara shot the smoker in the head with an arrow.

Owen was about to move, but Lara stopped him,  
"What are you-?"

"Gonna lay a trap," he whispered. He snuck over to the dead body, looted him and crafted something on him, then snuck back over to Lara and Tsume.

Whatever he placed by the dead body started beeping, alerting some of the soldiers.

"What the hell?" Two of them went over to check. Once they were close enough, Owen's trap exploded, killing the two soldiers.

Lara had to cover her ears from the explosion, but it certainly did its job.

This alerted all the other soldiers, but Owen and Lara quickly dealt with them.

Once all the soldiers were dead, they looted the soldiers for any items and ammo they could use. They even found another recording, from Konstantin,  
" ** _I have sinned in God's name. Much blood has been spilled on this valley floor. As I speak now, blood continues to flow._**

 ** _Forgive me. That the divine work requires sacrifices does not mean I am clean._**

 ** _Forgive me. For since I've suffered the stigmata in my youth, I have sinned in your name._**

 ** _Forgive those I have killed myself and those who have been killed in my name. They knew not what they were doing._**

 ** _Forgive me. Forgive me for the work I do is not yet done. And there is yet much blood to be spilled._** "

"Konstantin is a man driven by his faith... but it's twisted and vile," Lara said. "He's been warped by his obsession..."

"And I'll bet anything that Ana's the one who started it," Owen added.

They went further down the path, then hid in some bushes when they saw more soldiers.

Owen groaned in frustration, "I'm really getting sick of this..."

"Me too," Lara whispered back.

They could hear them laughing about something, but then they saw a huge church behind them.

"So what did they say?" asked one of the soldiers.

"It's not his call," The soldier he was talking to replied. "But he's going to put a recommendation for us both. Then there'll be... an initiation ceremony of some sort."

Owen reached into his bag and brought out another rifle, an M249 SAW paratrooper version with a 200 round ammo drum.

"Shouldn't we be stealthy?" Lara asked.

"We gotta move quickly, right?" he asked back.

She nodded in response, then he opened fire. His shots hit pretty much every soldier on sight, but what was surprising was that they were all wearing armor, yet Owen's shots killed them instantly.

"Armor piercing rounds," Owen answered, guessing what Lara was thinking.

He stood up and ran over to the shack, where more soldiers were waiting... for their deaths.

Lara and Tsume followed after him, "Babe, you've never been sexier."

Smirking, Owen turned around and kissed her.

"Mph!" Lara cried in muffled surprise at first, then kissed him back, reveling in the fact that they were back together.

Oh, how she'd missed this.

However, as amazing as it was, they couldn't stop, just yet.

They looted the dead soldiers for supplies, and found another recording, from Ana,  
 ***coughing fit*** " ** _This fucking illness. It is ruining my body and now it threatens my mind as well. I keep drifting off. Getting lost in memories._**

 ** _...lost in thoughts of the day Lord Croft died. How the plan had to shift. How I thought we had failed. And before that. My early days with Trinity. Learning the secret histories of the world. Learning that it was our duty to save it._**

 ** _\- And back farther, to childhood. Konstantin and I. With only each other to rely on._**

 ** _Then I rip myself free. Back to the present._**

 ** _I've always done what had to be done. this time will be no different._** "

"More of Ana's personal journal," Lara surmised. "Whatever disease she has, it's starting to affect her mind. But it's not as if she was the very picture of mental stability before..."

Right as they got to the cathedral, they knew Tsume wouldn't be able to follow.

Owen turned to their wolf companion, "I need you to head back to the village, okay buddy?"

"We'll find you later, okay?" Lara petted him.

Tsume licked them both and ran off.

Then, Lara and Owen started climbing up the broken walls of the cathedral, trying to find a way in. They had to jump a few cliffs, and kill any other soldiers they ran into, but they eventually found a way in.

Once inside, they continued climbing.

As they kept moving, they heard a familiar voice, Ana,  
"These ruins hide much, Commander. You cannot dig too deep, or too fast."

" **The men are trying to be cautious-** " The Commander replied from a radio.

"Cautious? Why?" Ana asked. "We no longer have time for caution, and I no longer have the patience for it."

" **With all due respect, if all my men die down there then-** " The Commander began.

"We are all expendable here, Commander," Ana told him, coldly. "What matters are results. The stakes are too high."

They shimmied along the walls, continuing to listen to the conversation. It helped them to know if Trinity ran into any obstacles other than them or the villagers.

" **We've reached the lower level, but we have another problem,** " The Commander said. " **We've lost our rear guard.** "

"Define "lost", Commander," Ana asked.

" **No radio contact, no visual contact,** " The Commander answered. " **Just, gone.** "

"Then proceed without them," said Ana, coldly.

" **That's outside mission protocol, ma'am,** " said the Commander. " **It produces unnecessary risks.** "

"Can you achieve your goal without them?" asked Ana.

" **Ma'am, I don't think we're alone down here!** " said the Commander, sounding nervous. " **We need tactical support!** "

"No. We are stretched too thin across this valley," said Ana. "If you feel you're being pursued, I suggest you move faster."

Lara and Owen grappled up higher till they made it to the top.

They found Ana in the next room, looking over a hole in the ground,  
"It's got to be down there."

Owen walked out of hiding and stepped into her line of sight, aiming his Colt M1911 pistol at her,  
"What's up, Ana? Long time."

Ana held up her hands, "So, you really did come back for Lara. You're more stupid than I thought. Have you forgotten that she pretty much dismissed you as she-"

"No, I haven't," he interrupted. "But don't talk like she was the only one being selfish. You of all people don't have the right to judge."

"Are you really-" Ana began to say, before she was grabbed from behind. Lara held her Remington pistol at Ana's temple,  
"Killing an unarmed woman? That would be cold even for you, Lara."

Owen was about to ask what she was doing, when he heard soldiers coming. He quickly turned, aiming his pistol, but they were completely surrounded.

"...Ah, shit," cursed Owen.

"Then again," Ana began, "I know why you haven't pulled that trigger. Shoot me, and my men will cut you down within seconds. It's the one thing they're better at than you."

"Shut up, Ana!" Lara ordered as she and Owen looked around.

The part of the floor they were standing on was rigged to blow. That gave them a crazy idea.

Owen moved over to stand next to her, and they both tied their legs around some rope.

"Don't move!" One of the soldiers yelled. "You have nowhere to go!"

"Except down!" Owen yelled, grinning like a madman, before he shot one of the explosives.

There was a huge explosion, killing most of the soldiers while Lara and Owen ended up falling through the ground with Ana. They all ended up landing on some wooden rafters before they dangled in midair...right above some live generators.

"Those generators!" Ana shouted. "They're going to pull us down with them!"

Lara groaned, feeling dizzy due to accidentally hitting her head.

Owen quickly shot one of the generators, while Lara shot the other once her ears stopped ringing.

However, they both ended up falling while Ana climbed up. Lara groaned as she held her head, but at least she managed to keep conscious.

"Lara, you okay?" Owen asked as he went over to her.

"I think so," Lara replied.

"Reconsider my offer, Lara!" Ana called. "Before it's too late!"

A pause...but then Lara pointed her pistol up and shot at Ana, who cried out as the bullet hit her shoulder.

"It was too late the moment you betrayed my family!" Lara called as she and Owen stood up. "I'm getting the Atlas, Ana!"

Sounds of gunfire and screaming came from below them.

"Something is slaughtering my men down there!" Ana called. "If they can't find it, neither can you!"

"We've dealt with this kind of thing before!" Owen yelled before running off.

"Go to hell!" Lara yelled before she followed him.

Ana got out her radio, still holding her shoulder, "Croft and Taylor are on their way. Kill them and bring me that goddamn Atlas!"

* * *

 **Go fuck yourself Ana!**

 **Owen finally got through to Lara, about damn time!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	13. Chapter 12: The Atlas & Jonah's Return

**I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: The Atlas & Jonah's Return**

Lara and Owen squeezed through a narrow gap, finding a campfire and a window that showed the chamber where the Atlas was.

"Hello mama~!" Owen whistled.

"That's it!" Lara realized. "It has to be..."

"Well, Lara...looks like we're getting closer," said Owen.

She took a moment to rest by the campfire.

"...We're ahead of Ana, now," Lara said, "But I don't know what we've gotten ourselves into, here. Something else dwells in the darkness of this place...but we've got to continue. We've come too far, now."

"We'll have the upper hand as long as she continues to underestimate us," Owen added, then he noticed a mural on the wall. It showed a battle around a fortress, with raging fires.  
"The Prophet's Deathless Army, armed with Greek Fire, they were unstoppable..."

Lara went down the next passage, with Owen not far behind.

They saw some smoke up ahead, both of them coughed and covered their noses at a wretched smell.

"Augh... that smell..." Lara groaned.

"Burning flesh..." Owen surmised.

It was soon revealed that he was right; a large group of Trinity soldiers were lying against the walls, piled on top of each other, hanging from branches, all burned alive. Their skin was red and raw. The walls of the passage were black, the whole place looked like the inside of a volcano, minus the lava.

As they kept moving, one burned soldier moved, startling them.

The soldier was dying, slowly, "Let me... please... let me go... let me go..."

He wanted them to end his suffering. Owen drew his pistol, aimed, and looked away before shooting him in the head.  
"I hate having to do that."

"Me too," Lara said.

They went further down, finding less bodies, but plenty of burned heads.

"Jesus," Owen cringed. "How many times did Freddy and Jason have to fight?" Lara looked at him, confused. "Remember; at the end of Freddy Vs. Jason, Jason came out of the water carrying Freddy's head? So it seemed like Jason was the winner, but the camera did a close-up of Freddy's head, then his eyes looked at the camera and winked."

"Oh, right," Lara remembered, then shivered with creeps. "That was so freaky."

They reached the end of the passage, and heard some deep voice yelling in some kind of unknown dialect.

"What the hell is that?" Lara asked.

"I don't know," said Owen, "But I'm getting deja vu...and not the good kind."

There way out was blocked by red barrels.

"Those vessels are still full," Lara surmised.

"Let's hope we don't burn ourselves alive," Owen said.

He fired his pistol at the vessels, making them explode and burn away the blockage.

As they went on, Lara found another scroll.  
" _From the journals of Decius, first apostle to the Prophet, 972 A.D._

 _Some believe the Prophet to be God's son risen, but he makes no such claims. Some praise his actions as miracles, but he rejects such attributions. In his humility, his followers see the truth of his message. We see the change coming._

 _I have shed the trappings of my station and now devote myself fully to the Prophet. I spread his word, recruiting others of my station to the cause. But this has enraged the elite and brought the full attention of the Church in the West._ "

"The first Apostle abandoned the wealth of his birthright to follow the Prophet, even as the number of his enemies grew..." said Lara.

Moving on, they went into the chamber where the Atlas was and walked up to it.

A big hole in the roof of the cathedral showed the night sky, which boomed some thunder.

The Atlas itself was blackish-silver, shaped like a dodecahedron, each side was hexagon shaped. There were strange markings on each side and something inside it made the markings glow orange.

Owen gently took the Atlas off the pedestal,  
"Incredible... I wonder what this is made of..."

"What's making it glow from the inside?" Lara wondered as well.

Before they could think about it, a grenade landed beside the pedestal.

"CRAP!" Owen shouted as he pulled Lara away from the grenade, just as it exploded. Thankfully, they weren't hurt, but they did hear voices up above.

"Trinity," Lara whispered. "They're here!"

That's when Owen spotted a familiar red dot on Lara's forehead.

"GET DOWN!" he shouted as he pulled Lara down, just as a shot was fire. "Of course they bring fucking sniper rifles!"

Both got out their assault rifles and fired back. There were more vessels of Greek Fire lying around the chamber, and practically every soldier was next to one.

Shooting the vessels, making them explode, which also killed most of the soldiers made dealing with them quicker.

More burst in from a door on the opposite end, a couple of them had armor.

Lara threw a smoke grenade, blinding them, then she and Owen finished them off.

They ran into the next area, where more soldiers came in through the ceiling. Luckily, the whole place was full of smoke, so they could barely see.

Owen threw a poison gas grenade at them, which killed them all.

But then the door at the far end was starting to get seared through. Lara prepared a couple grenade arrows, and fired was the door was busted down, killing the three soldiers that tried to attack.

They looted all of the soldiers, then headed out.

Soon, they headed down into a channel of water...where a familiar scent hit their noses.

"Oh, no...sulfur," said Lara. "This whole place could go up...we've got out of here, quick."

They began swim through the water, but heard voices above them.

"They've still got to be here. Cover the exits."

As they began to duck under a branch, they saw that the floor above them had a hole, and there was a soldier with a flamethrower standing above them.

"Here! I got 'em!" He yelled and fired at them, but they dove underwater as the flames spread.

As they hid underwater, they could still hear the soldiers talking.

"What about those things? Did we lose them?"

"I wouldn't count on it."

"Find the Atlas, double time, and let's get the hell outta here."

Soon, Lara and Owen began to swim through the water, but when they came up for air, someone threw another grenade at them, forcing them to dive underwater, again.

As they started swimming under the flaming water again, they heard the soldiers screaming like they were being attacked.

A severed arm fell into the water, right before an oil tank blew up, disorienting them, but they kept moving.

A dead soldier fell into the water in front of them, right before they came up for air.

They looked up and saw two guys with flamethrowers.

"Freeze! It's over! Hand over the At-"

Blades protruded from their chests, then they fell forward, into the water, landing on them.

Lara and Owen quickly pushed them off, then took the rebreathers from their masks and put them in their mouths. This would help them breath freely underwater.

They swam further, past a sunken passageway.

They swam through debris, tree roots, and old, broken blades until they emerged to get a look at their surroundings.

They were now in another giant chamber, with a huge statue of the Prophet in the middle. The place was partially flooded. Not far behind the statue was the way out.

"That's our exit," Lara said.

"The statue's still barely standing," Owen surmised. "If we use the Greek Fire, we can destroy the support beams to knock it down and make a bridge out of here."

Suddenly, they heard a scream, followed by a sickening crunching noise, causing them to look up, only to see a huge splatter on the wall.

They turned away and shot the vessels of Greek Fire, making them explode, spreading the fires all over the support beams, burning them away.

The statue tilted back till it hit the broken staircase that led to the exit.

They quickly climbed on to the statue, then heard someone yell in an unknown dialect.

They turned around to see men in middle-aged armor, aiming fire arrows at them.

"Whoa! What the hell are those?!" asked Owen.

"I don't know!" said Lara. "Just run!"

And run, they did, avoiding exploding barrels and fire arrows the whole way. They ran along wooden bridges and climbed up walls, and at one point, Lara almost slipped, but Owen managed to catch her.

Eventually, they made it to the top and were about to jump to the other side, but they underestimated the length of the jump and they ended up sliding down a pit.

Thankfully, it led into a cave, where they fell into the water.

"I know this isn't the best time, but..." Owen started. "Will you still marry me?"

Lara smiled at him as they got out of the water, "I never stopped wanting to."

"Me either," he said, before he kissed her, passionately.

She moaned into it, their tongues dancing together. Then they separated.

"For our honeymoon, I'm voting for Hawaii," Owen added. "Someplace warm without a single sign of snow anywhere."

"I'm pretty sure you just want to see me in a bikini every day, Mr. Taylor," Lara said, grinning.

Owen turned around so her back was facing him and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, "Oh no, Miss Croft. I intend on keeping you naked in bed for a while." He said huskily, which caused her to blush and her body to heat up.

"Oh, Owen...well, anyway, we better get going," said Lara.

"Right," Owen said as he and Lara walked through the caverns.

"Jacob?" Lara asked using the radio. "We made it. We're out."

" **Lara, thank god you're all right!** " Jacob exclaimed. " **Bring the Atlas to me in our observatory in the mountains.** "

"We're on our way," said Lara. Soon, she and Owen jumped into another pool of water and began to swim their way through.

They found themselves in a cave as they kept swimming.

Eventually, they made it to another part of the temple, when an unexpected voice called from the radio...

" **Lara?! Lara, are you up there?!** " It was Jonah!

"Jonah, is that you?!" Lara asked, gasping.

Jonah laughed happily, " **Little bird! You're alive, I knew it!** "

"Hey pal!" Owen said.

" **Owen?! No way!** " Jonah exclaimed. " **You actually came back! I had a feeling you would, but I wasn't too sure!** "

"Couldn't leave Lara alone when she had her head mostly shoved up her ass," Owen replied.

Lara punched him playfully, "Jonah, where are you?"

" **I'm up here in some kind of fortress,** " Jonah answered. " **You can thank Jacob... His people picked me up half-dead out on the tundra.** "

"I can't believe you came after me," Lara sighed.

" **Is that really so hard to believe?** " Jonah asked. " **Owen has me beat in that category!** "

"We're on our way to you now," Lara said. "Don't go anywhere."

" **Hadn't planned on it,** " Jonah replied. " **Be careful out there.** "

"...Good to hear from Jonah again," said Owen. "Man, I missed him...how does he look, these days?"

"He grew his hair out," said Lara, "And he grew a beard."

"You're kidding," Owen said before they approached a rock wall and began to climb up.

Once they were at the top, they stepped out of the cave, finding themselves back in the Geothermal Valley.

They weren't far from the observatory, so they quickly made their way over.

When they got there, Jonah was standing at the steps to the entrance, waiting for them, along with Tsume.

"Jonah!" Lara ran over and hugged him.

"You look terrible," Jonah said. "Terrible, but happy."

"Maybe cause I'm back," Owen joked, clasping hands with Jonah and hugging.

"Glad you made it back," the Hawaiian man said.

Lara hugged Tsume next, who licked her face, "I was right Jonah! Dad was right, the Divine Source is real! I wish he could've been here."

"He'd be proud of you," Jonah said as Sofia walked over to them. "Sofia's told me what you've done for her people."

"I'm glad to see you two are safe," Sofia said.

"You too," Owen replied.

"Jacob is waiting for you in the observatory," Sofia said, gesturing up the steps.

Lara, Owen, Jonah, and Tsume all made it up the stairway and entered the observatory, where they found Jacob waiting for them.

He was standing in front of a chandelier-like mechanism in the middle of the room.

He turned to them as they walked over, and Lara held out the Atlas.

Jacob looked at it in awe, "You actually found it. The founders of Kitezh were skilled craftsmen. They used this place to view the Atlas."

In the middle of the chandelier was a space that was clearly made for the Atlas. Lara placed it, then Owen went over to the chains near one of the walls and started pulling.

As the Atlas grew higher, a beam of sunlight hit it, causing what looked like some sort of diagram to appear on the floor, which made Lara and Jacob step back.

"Incredible...!" Jonah said.

"They must have used this to plan the construction of the city," Lara surmised.

"Like ancient blueprints," said Jonah.

"Everything radiates out from this point," Lara said, walking over to one of diagrams in front of the largest one. "That puts the center of the city under the lake. ...But...something's not right..." Looking at the diagram's position. "The cathedral where the Atlas was; it's on the wrong side of the map. Baby, keep rotating it."

"Right," Owen pulled the chains, making the diagram rotate, until...

"Stop! That's it," Lara looked at it, and gasped. "Kitezh isn't under the lake, it's under the glacier!" She walked over to one of the windows to look at the mountain of ice. "The Divine Source must be there."

"How the hell are we going to get through all that ice?" Owen questioned. "We don't even have a cryo-drill."

Lara took a closer look, "Wait... this path here leads into the city."

"The cathedral is there... and the tower on the other side," Owen continued, noticing what his fiancée did.

"That means the entrance to Kitezh must be..." here," Lara finished, stepping into the middle of the room. "The entrance to Kitezh is here." She looked at Jacob, who didn't seem even a little surprised. "You knew."

Jacob smiled and nodded.

Suddenly, they heard an exploding sound, causing them to look up and see the mechanism drop down with the Atlas still in it. As the rubble fell, Lara ended up falling out of a window, hanging onto a chain for dear life as Trinity's soldiers came dropping in on ropes!

"Lara!" Owen cried as he ran to help her, and meanwhile, Jonah fought off the soldiers while holding the Atlas.

Tsume attacked a couple soldiers while Owen grabbed one that ran at him and threw him out the window where Lara was hanging on for dear life.

"Grab on!" Owen reached for her, and she climbed up the chain till she could reach his hand.

Right as he pulled her up, they heard Jonah screaming! They saw to their horror that he was being carried away by a soldier onto the helicopter! Even worse, he had the Atlas!

"Lara, Owen!" he yelled. "Don't come after me! Run!"

"Jonah!" Lara screamed. "Noo!"

All they could do was watch as the chopper flew away.

"Dammit!" Owen cursed.

"Ugh...Lara...!" Jacob groaned, causing Lara to gasp as she ran over to him.

"Jacob!" she said as she set him up against a pillar.

"You okay, man?" Owen asked.

Jacob had taken a shot to the chest, and his face was bruised, "We don't have much time. It won't be long till Trinity discovers the location of the Source."

"But, we have to save Jonah," Lara argued.

"Even if it means giving up the truth you came here to find?" Jacob asked.

Lara grabbed Owen's hand and pet Tsume, "These two, and Jonah, risked their lives to come here to help me. I almost lost them once, not again."

Jacob nodded, "Then go... do what you must."

Lara, Owen and Tsume stood up and left as some villagers came in to tend to Jacob's injuries.

* * *

 **Jonah's back, and now he's gone again!**

 **Konstantin and Ana just keep digging their holes deeper!**

 **But, Lara and Owen are still planning to get married~! X)**

 **Read and review, please!**


	14. Chapter 13: Saving Jonah

**I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: Saving Jonah**

Sometime later, the three had returned to the outskirts of the Soviet gulag.

"If Jonah's still alive, they're most likely holding him here," Owen said.

"I never wanted to come back to this awful place, but we can't leave him Trinity's hands," Lara said.

"That's true," said Owen. "...We already lost enough people back at Yamatai...we're not losing Jonah."

"...Then let's go," said Lara as she, Owen, and Tsume began to look for a way inside.

"Hey Sofia, you there?" Owen asked into the radio.

" **Owen, Lara, are you alright?** " Sofia asked.

"We're up by the old copper mill overlooking the gulag," Lara said. "We're going in after Jonah."

" **I know the spot,** " Sofia replied. " **We hid a stash of weapons near where we first attacked Trinity, you might find them useful.** "

"Thank you, Sofia," Lara said. "We'll see you when we get out."

Owen pried open a metal crate, finding the weapons stash,  
"Found it! ...Fucking A, broad-head climbing arrows!"

Lara's face lit up, "We could definitely use those!"

Before Lara could test them out, though, Tsume barked out to her and Owen, having found another tape recorder. Lara picked it up and pressed the play button, only to hear Jonah's voice, causing her to gasp.

" _ **Lara? ...Lara! Laaaaara! Answer me! Last time I saw you, you were... damn it, Lara, you better not be dead.**_

 _ **After the Avalanche, I got one little blip. One brief echo, but I'll be damned if it wasn't your voice. I know I heard it. I know you survived. At least the avalanche. I haven't heard a peep since. But I'll keep trying. I know you told me to leave, to get somewhere safe, but... did you really expect me to leave you here? Come on, you should know me better than that.**_ "

"An intercepted radio transmission from Jonah," Lara surmised. "Trinity must have been monitoring him when he followed me into the valley..."

"All the more reason to save him," Owen said.

Lara nodded, then shot a broad-head arrow at a wooden scaffold.

She climbed onto it first, then Owen lifted Tsume up to her, then she lifted him up to the top.

She climbed up after him, then Owen climbed up.

Once they made it up, they ziplined down several ropes, heading deeper and deeper toward the gulag before they reached the bottom, where they found several Trinity soldiers searching around.

Tsume growled, but Lara pet his head to silence him.

They silently dispatched them and made their way to the supply shack where John was.

Once there, Lara gave him some Byzantine coins to buy the Franchi PA8 shotgun.

She then shot more broad-head arrows at a wooden wall so she, Owen and Tsume could climb up.

Once up the cliff, they headed through a small part of the forest, but the weather started getting worse.

"We've got to find shelter," Lara said.

Luckily, there was a cave up ahead, so they headed in.

Once inside, they sat down against the wall and huddled close to each other, with Tsume laying in the middle, all three of them sharing body heat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 _"...I should've never doubted you, Dad," Lara said._

 _Lara stood before her father's tombstone...it was sometime after she came back from Yamatai. However, it seemed that she was alone._

 _"I wasn't there for you when you needed me, most," said Lara. "I'll prove to them all that they were wrong about you. That you sought the truth. Not fairytales. I'll make it right, Dad. I promise."_

 _"Lara," she turned to see Ana standing beside her. "It's time. Jonah's waiting."_

 _They both walked away from the tombstone._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _End Flashback_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara gasped awake.

"You okay, Lara?" Owen asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," Lara said as she tried to get up. "Come on, let's hurry...Jonah's waiting."

Owen nodded before he and Tsume followed after Lara.

They headed further into the cave, climbing wooden platforms and swinging across gaps till they came out the other side.

Back outside, they saw they were now closer to the gulag.

They could see what looked like a water tower.

"Jonah must be up there," said Lara.

"Let's hurry," said Owen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, the Atlas was on a table in front of a projector light...while Ana and Konstantin stared up at the ceiling.

"Extraordinary...!" Ana whispered in awe. "The Divine Source is in the old city, buried beneath the ice!"

"Then it's time to move," Konstantin said. "I will notify the dig teams and prepare the transports."

"Our men encountered the Deathless Ones in the archive," Ana said, sounding concerned. "This will not be easy, brother."

"The holy path is not meant to be easy," Konstantin said.

"Are the men aware of what they will face?" Ana asked.

"No," Konstantin said, coldly. "But they are prepared to fight and to die for the cause. That's all we need from them."

Ana looked, anxious, "Konstantin... now that we're so close to the end..."

Konstantin turned to her, "We've only just begun!"

"I'm afraid Trinity is just using us," Ana revealed. "What if they don't intend to let you keep the Source? We should prepare for-"

"No!" Konstantin argued, grabbing her shoulders. "You must have faith. I wasn't chosen by Trinity... Once the Source is mine, it won't matter what they want. I will lead God's immortal army and you... you shall live."

He walked out, with look of full conviction on his face.

Ana watched him leave, smiling a bit. Her brother so easy to manipulate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back with Lara, Owen, and Tsume, they were trying to find a way to the gulag. As they did, they heard a soldier talk on the radio.

" **Konstantin. The prisoner is awake and ready for questioning.** "

" **On my way,** " replied Konstantin.

"Owen, we have to hurry," said Lara.

They climbed up a tree and an ice wall up to a cliff, which took them into the forest.

Once there, they found some tire tracks, so they began to follow them.

But then they heard a couple gunshots.

"Damn, they're everywhere," Lara cursed.

"Tell me about it," Owen agreed.

'Dammit, makes me feel like we're gonna get jumped at any minute,' thought Tsume as he gave a deep growl.

They snuck over to where the soldiers were and quickly took them out.

Jumping some trees and branches to move forward, they found more soldiers.

Lara shot two of them with arrows, Owen put a silencer on his pistol and shot two more, and Tsume snuck up to the last two and ripped their throats out.

Once they took care of them, Lara shot some more climbing arrows into a wooden panel before she and Owen climbed up, the latter carrying Tsume on the way, before they saw some soldiers up ahead, forcing them to hide.

"What happened out there?" asked one.

"Bridge collapsed," answered the other. "Looks like we'll have to fly out the rest of the cargo."

"Hope they found something up there," said the first. "I'm getting sick of this place."

That's when Lara shot both of them in the head with her arrows.

Then, she and Owen climbed up a tree to jump onto a big rock to get a good view of rest of the area.

There were four more soldiers, two right in front of the rock, and two more by some trees further away.

Lara shot the two by the trees, while Owen and Tsume dealt with the two in front of them.

They moved further through the forest till they found some trucks with tank wheels in front of a big gate and a wall.

Luckily, the wall had a decent sized crack that they could squeeze under.

As they made their way through, they could hear a helicopter flying overhead.

"Ana must be close," said Lara.

Further up, there were some tents set up on the ice, and hole that they could swim through.

Lara sighed, "Hate this."

"Join the club," Owen agreed.

Tsume whimpered, joining in the sentiment.

They went under the freezing water, hearing soldiers talking above them.

Coming up to another hole in the ice, where there was a soldier standing next to it with his back facing it, Lara swam up and pulled him under, breaking his neck.

They swam a little further till they found another hole in the ice to climb out of.

Once out, Lara shot another soldier with an arrow, then they kept moving.

That's when they saw some soldiers, working on some kind of tanker truck.

"Were you with Konstantin down in Syria?"

"Yeah, it was a bit of a mess."

"Croft?"

"Konstantin didn't expect to find her in there. She managed to bring the whole tomb down on our heads."

"Thorn in his side, that one."

There were some barrels of fuel lying next to one of the trucks, so Owen shot them, making them explode along with the truck!

The explosion blew the soldiers away, killing them.

A few more soldiers came from behind the trees, but Lara shot them.

They headed up some metal stairs that led to a nearby weather station.

Once there, they climbed up a semi-broken ladder to get inside, where they found a tape recorder, from Ana,  
" ** _I won't die in this God forsaken valley. My faith is stronger. My will is stronger. Even if... my mind keeps wondering away._**

 ** _In our youth... Konstantin and I in our youth..._**

 ** _He was a difficult child. Always wondering, always questioning. Afraid of what the future might hold. Afraid that he might never find his purpose. The night I cut those marks into his hands, the night I whispered into his ear, I made him. I saved him. he believed it to be the work of God, just as I'd hoped._**

 ** _Now I need him to save me._**

 ** _And if, in the end, he can't. Then I'll save myself._** "

"Ana has manipulated her brother for years, shaped him into the monster he has become," Lara surmised. "I almost feel sorry for him."

"Poor son of a bitch," said Owen while he shook his head.

They climbed up a ladder that led out of the station.

They found the Atlas, sitting on a cushion before Lara picked it up, causing the map to disappear. That's when they heard Konstantin's voice.

" **This is getting tiresome. Just give in to God's will!** "

Lara and Owen turned to see a monitor...and on it was Konstantin, Ana, and Jonah, who was tied to a support beam and was getting beaten.

" **If you're gonna start preaching, you-** " Jonah started, only for the camera feed to cut off.

Lara, Owen and Tsume ran over to a hole in the chamber that led outside.

"We'd better hurry," Owen said.

They could see some kind of structure down below...an old chapel, it looked like. That's when they knew that Jonah had to be there.

They began to climb down, riding a zipline till they got to another platform.

Lara almost fell off the gondola, but luckily, Owen caught her again before they jumped over to the tower, where they saw a soldier speaking on a walkie-talkie.

"Negative," he said. "We're continuing with the next phase of the operation. Just be prepped to move."

As his back was turned, Lara jumped down, but he spotted her. However, she killed him before he could sound the alarm by stabbing him in the head with her pickaxe.

She, Owen and Tsume continued on, jumping and climbing some old shacks.

After they jumped to a pipe hanging from a crane, it tilted down till they fell on an iron beam.

They started to walk across it, but it collapsed a little, breaking open a pipe of water, which knocked them off the beam and they fell into an open water tower.

"Dammit!" Owen exclaimed. "The Nathan Drake curse strikes again!"

Lara chuckled as she, Owen and Tsume climbed out of the water.

They climbed out of the tower and headed outside where they found another one, but this one was being patrolled by another soldier. Thankfully, Lara took care of him with one shot of her bow and arrow. Once he was dead, she, Owen, and Tsume ziplined down to the tower before they ziplined again through a hole in the roof. However, Lara ended up knocking over some things before she landed.

"...You think anybody heard that?" asked Lara.

"If they didn't," Owen began, "They're either deaf or very heavy sleepers."

Lara chuckled at that before she looked around and saw that they were in what looked like some sort of barrack...or worse, a mental asylum.

They ran to an open door right in front of them, which led into a prison like area.

Owen spotted some keys hanging on the wall and a cell full of villagers.

He took the keys and tossed them into the cell,  
"Shh..."

The three of them moved on, till they found a window between them and the next room, where Konstantin was interrogating Jonah.

"Your loyalty to her is strong," Konstantin complimented. "I admire you. I do. But even my patience has limits." He pointed his gun at him. "Tell me what you know. Now."

Jonah spotted Lara and Owen through the window. He spat out some blood and started laughing.

Then Lara shot a couple of rounds at the glass, which didn't really shatter, but it did distract Konstantin long enough for Jonah to headbutt him. Knowing he couldn't hold him off for long, Lara, Owen, and Tsume tried to open the door, but it was locked.

"Dammit!" Owen cursed as he tried to push it down, then went to look through the window, where he saw Jonah about to shoot Konstantin with his own gun.

"Do it!" Lara urged.

"Please...please, no," Konstantin begged.

"Don't listen to him!" Owen yelled.

"I was only doing what I believed was right," Konstantin pleaded.

Jonah's eyes looked around, not feeling right about this. Seeing him hesitate, Konstantin drew a combat knife and stabbed Jonah in the side!

"NO!" Lara screamed, hitting the glass.

"YOU BASTARD! I'LL KILL YOU!" Owen exclaimed.

Konstantin took his gun back and pulled out his radio, "Sweep the cell blocks. Kill everyone."

Then he walked out.

Lara kept banging on the glass, but it didn't break, until Owen grabbed a fire extinguisher and broke it after hitting it three times.

They quickly climbed through the window and went to Jonah's side.

"I'm sorry, I should've killed him..." he apologized. "But he was unarmed... I just couldn't..."

"Shh..." Lara shushed him. "You shouldn't have to. I am so sorry for getting you into this mess."

Jonah laughed a bit and coughed, "I thought I could keep up..."

"Leave that to me and Tsume," Owen joked.

"They're coming," Some of the released villagers came in. "We're surrounded."

"This time, we've got your back," Lara told Jonah, before she, Owen and Tsume walked off.

"He's dying," one of the villagers told them. "We don't have much time."

They headed out the door, but before Owen closed it, he told the villagers,

"Bar the door." Then he closed it.

Soon, they were searching the building, and they could hear Trinity's soldiers rushing in.

"They're coming," Owen whispered while Tsume growled viciously.

The radio buzzed as Trinity soldiers relayed orders and news with each other.

" **All units, respond! We've got to deal with them.** "

" **We're almost in position.** "

" **Not seeing the targets yet. Waiting for orders.** "

" **Stay in position. Get ready, they're dangerous.** "

Lara checked her Heckler & Koch G36KV to make sure it was loaded, which it was, while Owen pulled out two IMI Mini Uzis from his bag.

"Just how much are you packing?" Lara asked, a little surprised.

"As much as Frank Castle and Rambo combined," Owen responded, with that bad-boy smirk she loved so much.

"Good," Lara said. "We're going to need it, because here they come!"

Soon, two men jumped in through a window, but Lara quickly shot them both with her pistols.

"...GOD, I love when you do that!" Owen exclaimed.

"Behind you!" Lara shouted as she shot another soldier in the chest, then in the face.

They headed up the steps and saw some soldiers running away.

Outside, they heard a helicopter, which began to open fire on where they were.

They sprinted away, till one of the bullets made something explode, disorienting them for a moment, but they got back up and kept moving.

A few soldiers tried to get in their way, but Lara shot them with her shotgun before they kept moving, avoiding any explosions on their way. As they made it outside, they were suddenly hit by smoke bombs.

"Crap!" Owen cursed with a cough. "Take cover!"

"Confirmed heat sigs, ready to engage!"

Two armored soldiers stepped out of the smoke, with red laser sights on their rifles. They opened fire, but the trio stayed behind cover.

One more soldier came around behind them and threw a grenade, so the trio dove through a hole in the floor, falling into the water.

They swam under, coming to an area covered in ice, but several holes to climb out of. But there were soldiers all over on the ice.

"Dammit, what the hell is going on?!" asked one of them. "They're gone!"

"It has to be the water!" said another. "They can't stay under, forever! Keep your eyes open!"

As one soldier got too close, Tsume launched out of the water and bit his neck before he dragged him under the ice, the water turning red with his blood.

"We lost a man! They're below the ice!"

They released more red smoke to cover the area while the trio swam over to another hole.

When one soldier got a bit too close to the hole, Owen reached out and grabbed him before Lara stabbed him in the head with her pickaxe. However, the other soldiers saw them and tried to shoot at them while they were in the underwater, but they swam away before they could.

They swam over to another hole, where Owen prepared a poison grenade.

He motioned for Lara and Tsume to stay under water right before he threw it.

They immediately saw why; when the grenade went off, the red smoke turned purple from the poison.

The soldiers started coughing,

"What the hell-?!"

"It's poison!"

They all suffocating from breathing in the poison till they all collapsed.

Lara raised her hands at Owen, asking, "Now what?" Even though they were now safe, the room was still full of smoke contaminated with poison.

Owen pulled out a spherical device and threw it out of the ice. It opened up, and sucked up all the smoke.

The three of them climbed out of the water, and Owen grabbed the sphere and threw out of one of the holes in the roof and shot it, releasing the smoke, but a safe distance away from them.

"I'm guessing that was some sort of device that sucks up smoke?" Lara asked.

"Yep, figured it would help," he replied. "Let's get back to Jonah."

* * *

 **Owen, gadget man!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	15. Chapter 14: The Deathless Ones

**Just gonna say this now; I'm changing something about the Deathless Ones.**

 **They can't be killed or destroyed. I know in the game, they could be, but I would think they're called Deathless Ones for a reason.**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 14: The Deathless Ones**

When they got back...the situation was grim. Jonah was lying on a gurney, being tended to by the villagers...but it didn't look like he was going to last very long.

"Oh, god, no!" cried Lara as she ran to his side. "Jonah? Jonah!"

"...Lara," Jonah whispered.

"I'm here," Lara said.

"...Me, too," Owen added while Tsume whimpered, worriedly.

"Listen to me," Jonah breathed out.

"Try not to move," Lara told him.

"If...if I don't make it out of here..." Jonah began.

"Don't talk like that, man," Owen told him.

"...Just listen," Jonah continued. "You can't blame yourself anymore. We all...make our own...choices..."

He seemed breath one last time and closed his eyes.

Lara, Owen and Tsume remained silent, but worried.

"His end is near," One of the villagers said.

"No!" Lara cried, tears running down her cheeks. "He can't die."

"We can help him," the villager told her.

She looked up in surprise, but also hope, "How?"

"We must get him to the observatory," he replied. "To Jacob."

"Then let's get moving," Owen said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A while later, they managed to make it back to the observatory with Jonah in tow. There, they found Jacob, who looked like he hadn't been injured at all.

"Jacob," said Lara. "He's dying."

"Let me tend to him," said Jacob.

Lara and Owen looked at him with curiosity. It wasn't that long ago that Jacob was shot, but he was already healed.

Jacob got a pouch out of his pocket and poured white dust onto his hand. He put the pouch away and rubbed the dust all over his hands, then placed them over Jonah's stab wound.

"The Lord is your guardian, your protective shade at your right hand," Jacob prayed. "The sun shall not harm you by day, nor moon by night. The Lord guard your soul from all evil." As he prayed, Jonah stirred, making Lara gasp happily. "The Lord guard your going and coming, from now to all time."

He removed his hands, revealing Jonah's wound was completely healed.

"...Whoa...!" Owen gaped in disbelief.

"Keep pressure on the wound," said Jacob to one of his men. "Prepare him."

With that, he walked away while the others tended to Jonah while Lara, Owen, and Tsume followed him.

"Jacob, you were shot..." Lara began.

"You're him, aren't you?" Owen asked. "The Deathless Prophet."

Jacob turned to them, looking humbled,  
"I can feel pain. I can be hurt. I am human, save for a human ending."

"And the Divine Source?" Lara asked.

"Something I found long ago," Jacob said. "It is real, and deeply powerful. But it is not divine."

"So, you've lied to them, for generations?" Owen asked, gesturing to his people.

Jacob shook his head, "I'm not proud of it, but I did it to protect them. I once used the Source to grant my armies their long lives... But it was a terrible mistake."

"The ones we saw in the Archive..." Lara realized.

"Jesus..." Owen muttered, a little disturbed.

"When enemies attacked Kitezh, the Deathless Ones brought the ice from the mountain down upon the city," Jacob explained. "Thousands were killed. They committed an atrocity to...keep the power. And so will Trinity, but on a much larger scale."

"But that's not you..." Lara argued. "The man I've come to know would never harm his people."

"I always imagine a good immortal to be beyond wise," Owen said. "But no one can become that way without making mistakes first..."

Jacob nodded, "You are right. All of this is my doing, and it must finally come to an end."

Lara stared at the ground in disbelief...and then looked at Owen, who stared at her...before she hugged him, causing him to hug her in return.

"...You were right, Owen," she said. "You were right, all along...no good could ever come of this...!" She then sniffled as she hid her face in his shoulder. "...An immortal life...it really does come with consequences. I'm sorry I didn't listen!"

"It's okay, better late than never that you realize it," Owen said, rubbing her back.

"The worst part, was watching the people I love pass on without me," Jacob said. "But, I was lucky to find new people to fill the void."

The sound of helicopters flew overhead, making them look up.

"Father, they're on the move!" Sofia informed them.

"They're going to brute force their way into the ice," Jacob said.

"Then we've already lost..." Sofia lamented.

"No," Lara disagreed. "There has to be a way to stop them. Jacob... the map showed a secret entrance into the city."

"The Path of the Deathless," said Jacob, "But it's too dangerous."

"We're running out of time!" Lara argued. "We can't give up, now!"

"She's right, Jacob," Owen said. "If we don't stop Trinity, now, then we lose."

"...If we can delay Trinity," Jacob began, "That might just give us a chance."

"I will take our forces and attack them on the ice," Sofia said.

"Then it's time. Open the path," Jacob told her.

Sofia nodded before she headed inside while Jacob ushered Lara, Owen, and Tsume away from the stairs...which opened up, revealing a hidden passageway.

"...Okay," Owen said. "I am getting SERIOUS Indiana Jones vibes, here."

Lara chuckled.

"When you're ready, the entrance lies beneath the observatory," Jacob said. "I will do what I can for your friend." He then walked off.

Owen knelt down to pet Tsume, "Listen pal, I want you to stay up here and help Sofia fight Trinity, while Lara and I find the Source."

Tsume whimpered a bit, till Lara pet him too,  
"Owen and I will be doing a lot of climbing, and I doubt you'd be able to follow. Besides, the Deathless Ones are something other worldly."

Though reluctant, Tsume nodded his head before he licked Owen and Lara, as if saying "Be back soon."

He scampered after Sofia while Lara and Owen headed down the path.

"You think Tsume will be all right?" Lara asked.

"You know him," said Owen. "He can survive anything."

As they entered the darkness, Lara turned on her glowstick and approached a wall with loose bricks, which she broke apart with her pickaxe, revealing a hidden stairwell. Inside, they could hear this eerie wind howling...almost like a voice.

"Remember what Roth said," Owen said. "Steel your nerves...expect the unexpected."

"As always," Lara nodded as they made their way down.

In the next part of the cave were more hard wood walls that Lara could shoot arrows into.

Lara shot some arrows into the wall before she and Owen climbed on them, but being careful not to put too much weight on them before they went around another corner, where they saw more wooden walls and a rocky ledge. After Lara shot climbing arrows into the wooden, she and Owen continued on before they found a campfire.

"How you holdin' up, Lara?" Owen asked.

"...I just have to stop to catch my breath," Lara said. "This place...Kitezh...Jacob...the Deathless Ones. I've been running so fast, for so long...that I haven't stopped to acknowledge the simple fact that all of this is real. A part of me can't believe it, but I know Jacob was telling the truth...whatever made him is here, and I'm going to find it before Trinity...I only wish Dad was alive to share in this discovery."

Owen nodded, understanding. They spent another minute upgrading their gear before moving on.

The next area was a giant cave that looked like ruins of an ancient, underground city built into the cave.

Soon, Lara and Owen arrived at what looked like the entrance to the observatory.

"Jacob, we're heading in," said Lara. "What will we find in there?"

" **My people haven't been down there since we sealed it off, centuries ago,** " Jacob responded via radio. " **But it should be safe, at least until you make it past the orrery.** "

"Was it part of the Observatory?" Owen asked.

" **It was built by my astronomers, before the Deathless buried the old city,** " Jacob answered. " **You'll need to use it to open the entrance to Kitezh.** "

They headed down the steps till they found a big gate, which was locked. Luckily, there was a big crack in one of the rock walls that they could squeeze through.

They made their way down, deep into the tomb with only their glowsticks to light the way, climbing down walls and jumping off ledges until they reached a huge chamber that held a huge model of some kind...but it wasn't the Solar System. It looked more like it had more than one of the planet Earth.

"...This is extraordinary...!" Lara whispered in amazement.

"If the theory of the multi-verse is ever discovered to be true, this is what a model of it might look like," Owen said.

"...Let's see how this thing works," said Lara as she and Owen got closer to it.

One of the planets had ropes tied around it, so Lara used a rope arrow to pull it, making a beam that they could jump to and walk across.

"Okay, now what?" Owen asked.

Lara looked up and spotted some other beams, which she used her rope arrows to pull into their proper places. Once she was certain everything was properly aligned, she began to climb up the walls and used her grappling hook to swing across.

"As much as I'm enjoying the view, wait up!" Owen called, jumping and swinging after her.

Lara scoffed at his quip about her butt, "Shut up!"

They jumped on to a wooden platform and climbed up further till they reached the highest point of the chamber, on one of the other sides of the model.

"It's locked on both sides," said Lara as she looked around.

"You get one side, I take the other," said Owen.

He grappled over to the top of the model and jumped over to the other lock.

Lara leaped over on one of the beams before she approached the other lock, which they pushed open to unlock the mechanism, which started slowly revolving around.

"Okay, this complicates things," said Owen.

As the model and planets rotated, Lara and Owen waited and timed their jumps as they climbed to the top, till they found the way out.

"Well...that was certainly a harrowing experience," Owen said between pants.

"You're telling me," Lara replied. "Come on, let's hurry."

As they walked, Owen spotted a pedestal nearby.

"Hey, Lara, look at this," he said as he opened it, revealing another book inside.

"...A codex," Lara said. "This one speaks of the advanced archery skills developed by Byzantium...with this, I can draw more arrows without reaching into my quiver."

They headed in further, finding more wooden walls, which Lara shot some arrows into so she and Owen could climb across.

When they got in further, they heard city bells.

"The old city must be close," Lara said.

As they walked out further into the snowy forest, they heard Sofia on the walkie-talkie.  
" **Lara, Owen, we're on the mountain above the glacier.** "

"Can you see Trinity?" asked Lara.

" **Yes, they're beginning their operation,** " said Sofia, while Tsume was heard growling in the background. " **Easy, boy. Not yet.** "

"Stay calm, pal," Owen told him.

"We're entering the old city now..." Lara said. "Listen Sofia, don't attack them too soon."

" **We'll give it some time,** " Sofia responded. " **I'll contact you again soon.** "

Tsume was heard barking on the radio, as if saying "Take care, you guys!"

"You too buddy!" Owen said.

He and Lara headed further into the cave till they came to a rock wall.

As they climbed up, they heard what sounded like people in armor, marching. Once they got to the top, they saw the ones marching wwere an army in middle-age armor.

One of them gave an order in an unknown language.

"The Deathless Ones?" Owen whispered.

"Most likely," Lara whispered back, then they shimmied along the wall, making sure to stay hidden.

They then jumped up and climbed onto an ice wall before climbing over a ledge, but when they tried to jump to another one, the ice crumbled beneath them, causing them to fall into a narrow crevice!

"AAAAAH!" Lara screamed before Owen grabbed her hand.

"Gotcha!" he exclaimed.

"Thanks," she replied.

They climbed through the crevice till they could jump out into another part of the cave.

They then climbed along more of the temple and more ice walls, making sure to stay out of sight from the Deathless Ones.

Next, they shimmied along some ice, seeing the Deathless ones march across a bridge right in front of them.

"There's so many of them...!" Lara whispered.

"And look at all those weapons," Owen added before they made it to the other side, and that's when Lara found something in the snow nearby. It looked like a bundle of papers.

" _I leave these notes for whoever should follow in my footsteps. My wounds are worse than I believed. They will not heal. Tonight, I will make one last attempt to escape this frozen tomb, but I doubt I have the strength. The Divine Source is here, at the peak of the tallest tower. But it is beyond my reach._

 _With the Source at his disposal, the Prophet's Deathless Ones are unstoppable, an army of wraiths and devils that can never die. A mockery of all God's creation. They are no longer human, and they will break any army that stands in their way. With every death and rebirth, they learn. They adapt._

 _Should Trinity, someday, find a way to seize it for ourselves... I fear that we will do no better._

 _Perhaps it would be best if it were to remain lost forever._ "

"...I don't think he ever made it out of here," Lara said, grimly.

"Yeah, and if we don't do something, neither will we," Owen said as he heard the Deathless Ones talking nearby. "Let's go, before we get spotted."

Lara nodded before they hurried off.

They jumped onto a zipline that took them down to a part of the city.

Unfortunately, near the end of the zipline were icicles, that kept getting bigger.

"Shit!" Lara cursed.

"Hang on!" Owen cried as they crashed into the ice and fell down. Luckily, they managed to grab onto a wooden plank...but then they heard someone coming.

"Oh, crap, hide, hide, hide!" Owen urged as they hid under the plank from one of the Deathless Ones.

After a few seconds, it left.

They continued to climb until they made it to an area that looked clear.

But as they got to the top, a Deathless One grabbed Lara by the throat and lifted her up. Owen grabbed his foot and pulled, making him fall backwards, breaking the floor, taking Lara with him.

"Lara!" Owen climbed up and jumped down to her.

"I'm okay," she assured him, till they saw more Deathless Ones ahead of them, and worse, they spotted them. "Or, I was!"

Owen drew his pistol and shot one in the head, blowing part of its face apart. But then it looked at them, and they saw it's face regenerate, like fire and ash.

"I guess that's why they're called 'Deathless'!" Owen exclaimed. "Now what?!"

"This!" Lara shot a grenade arrow at some vessels of Greek Fire, which made a big explosion that blew most of the Deathless Ones away.  
"Run!"

They ran through the city's courtyard, surrounded by blue flames, and the Deathless Ones were all around them!

"Keep going!" Owen yelled as they kept running, knocking back any of the Deathless Ones that got in their path. Even though they couldn't really kill them, they could at least keep them at bay long enough for themselves to escape.

After running for a long time and being chased, a bell sounded, and the Deathless Ones backed off, leaving them alone.

"Why are they leaving?" Lara wondered.

"Let's not stick around to find out," Owen said.

They went past a gate, climbed an ice wall and found another narrow gap to squeeze through, leading to an ice tunnel.

After they got through it, they slid down an icy slope and grappled their way across to a rooftop, but it shattered upon landing on it, causing them both to crash through and land on the ice. When they got up, they both gasped upon seeing a skeleton, frozen under the ice...along with several others.

"...I think we're getting close," said Owen.

"Mhm," Lara hummed, holding her side as they walked through the ankle deep water.

Then the whole place shook along with the familiar sound of a faraway explosion.

" **Lara, Owen!** " Sofia called from the radio. " **They're going to break through the ice any minute!** "

"Do you think you can stop them?" Lara asked.

" **The best we can do is buy you some time,** " Sofia said. " **I'll see you on the other side.** "

"You too, sister!" Owen replied, making Sofia chuckle.

"You better not be getting fresh with her, you little wanker!" Lara warned him.

"Come on, you know I only have eyes for you," he assured her, smacking her fine ass.

"Owen!" Lara scolded. "There's a time and place for everything!"

"Just reminding you," he joked.

Lara shook her head, chuckling as they squeezed through another gap and headed up some steps.

There was a bit of fog that quickly cleared, revealing a giant cathedral in the distance, and all around them was ice. They were definitely under the glacier.

"Wow...!" Owen said.

"The Chamber of Souls..." Lara said. "The Divine Source has to be there."

Owen then glanced down at a large gate where a statue of the Prophet stood.

"...Looks like the way into the center is through that gate," he said before he looked at Lara. "...This is it, Lara. No turning back, now."

"...I know," Lara replied.

"...Once you find the Divine Source," Owen began, "What will you do with it?"

"...There's no other choice," Lara answered. "It has to be destroyed."

Owen looked deep into her brown eyes and she looked into his ocean blue ones.  
"Then let's go."

* * *

 **We're nearing the end guys!**

 **Read and review, please!**


	16. Chapter 15: The Divine Source

**ALRIGHT PEOPLE, THIS IS IT!**

 **Sadly, this is the last chapter... BUT!**

 **There will two extension stories that take place after ROTR, so be on the lookout them!**

 **I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.**

* * *

 **Chapter 15: The City of Kitezh & the Divine Source**

Lara and Owen rode down a couple ziplines and made their way through the city to the gate.

Right when they got to it, it closed on them. They looked behind them to see a catapult in the distance launching a fireball at them!

They took cover as the fireball hit the gate, burning part of it away.

"They see us!" Lara said.

"Well...let's use their fire to our advantage!" Owen said. "We can have them open the way for us!"

He ran over to the gate and waved his arms, daring the Deathless Ones to hit him.

When another fireball was launched, he ran back to Lara's side, then the fireball hit the gate, burning the rest of it.

They ran through the now open gate, further into the city.

"GO, GO, GO, GO!" Owen shouted as they kept running with the Deathless Ones shouting after them.

"That was close!" said Lara. "Now what do we do?"

Suddenly, Owen stopped upon seeing a skeleton with arrows piercing its armor.

"...You think those things might come in handy?" he asked.

"...Yes," Lara replied as she took them from the dead soldier, but then they heard the Deathless Ones' cries.

"Take cover!" Owen cried. "It's an ambush!"

Soon, they took cover behind a brick wall, avoiding fiery arrows from the Deathless Ones.

"We can't kill them," Owen began, "But that doesn't mean we can't fight back!"

He pulled out a Milkor MGL Mk 1L grenade launcher and began firing.

As for Lara, she used her new armor-piercing arrows to strike down any of the Deathless Ones that didn't get blown up.

Once they were all gone, for now, they saw the next gate that they had to go through, but it was already closed.

Luckily, they saw a catapult nearby.

"I'll go over there and blow the door down," Lara said. Owen nodded in response.

Before she headed off, Sofia called again from the radio,  
" **You don't have much time. You must reach the Source before them.** "

"There's nothing more you can do, get somewhere safe," Owen told her.

" **Not a chance,** " Sofia said. " **You need us as much as we need you. We survive together or we die alone. Now go.** "

Lara headed over to the catapult, aimed it at the gate and launched a fireball, burning the top part.

However, she was forced to abandon it when the Deathless Ones started launching more fireballs at her.

"RUN, LARA!" Owen yelled. "FIND ANOTHER CATAPULT!"

Lara nodded before she jumped over ledges, used her rope arrows to swing across gaps, and then crossed a balance beam to another ice wall, which she climbed up.

She climbed up the rest of the way and shot some vessels of Greek Fire to blow away the Deathless Ones.

She glanced back and saw Owen, still trying to avoid getting pinned down, but he was getting surrounded.

"Owen!" she cried.

"Don't worry about me!" Owen yelled as he ran away. "I'll catch up!"

She began to turn the catapult when more Deathless Ones appeared all over the city.

"Archers," Lara realized. "Got to take them out...just need to aim this thing."

"Hey, you ugly motherfuckers!" yelled Owen. "Over here!"

The archers turned their attention to Owen, who tried to shoot at them, but then narrowly missed getting hit by an arrow.

"Too close!" Then he fired grenades at them, while Lara launched fireballs at them.

Once they were taken out, she launched one more fireball at the gate.

"Owen, it's open!" Lara shouted. "Let's go!"

"Hurry!" yelled Owen.

They climbed down from their posts and met each other at the gate.

Once they went through, the gate was hit by a fireball and the bridge they were about to go across started crumbling apart!

"RUN!" Owen yelled as they began to run across the bridge as it fell. Lara managed to reach the other side, but as she turned around, she saw Owen try to jump for it...but he missed.

"AAAAAAAH!" Owen screamed.

"OWEN!" Lara cried as she caught him by the hand. "I'm...not...losing you...again!"

Owen climbed up to the ledge, "Thanks."

They didn't have time to relax, cause they got ambushed by more Deathless Ones.

Owe launched more grenades at them while Lara fired grenade arrows and shot more vessels of Greek Fire.

Them the ice high above them broke apart, and began to fall toward them! Trinity had broken through!

"FUCK!" Owen cursed.

" **Lara! Owen!** " Sofia's voice was heard on the walkie-talkie. " **Trinity has broken through! Tsume's been-** " Then there was static.

"What?! What about Tsume?!" Lara asked, but she couldn't get a signal. "Sofia?! Sofia!"

"Dammit!" Owen cursed. "We gotta move!"

They started to climb up the cathedral, avoiding fireballs and fire arrows. All around them, they could hear gunfire; Trinity was trying to fight off the Deathless Ones.

But they were definitely ill prepared to deal with them.

"Poor bastards," said Owen. "Just like on Yamatai...I almost feel sorry for 'em...almost."

"Keep climbing!" Lara said.

They almost got hit by a fireball, but managed to keep their grip.

They jumped cliffs, grappled across gaps, climbed arrows on wooden walls and more as they kept climbing.

They were nearly close to the top when another fireball almost hit them!

"SHIT!" Owen cursed as he looked back.

"OWEN!" Lara screamed as another fireball hit, this time destroying the wall above them. Not just that, though, but the stones beneath them were falling down!

"LARA! JUMP TO THE OTHER SIDE! GO!" Owen yelled, and Lara nodded before she jumped, and Owen followed after her, both of them scrambling to reach the ledge until they made it up, both panting heavily before they looked down and saw more of the Deathless Ones running below.

Then they shimmied along the building, but stopped when they saw a Deathless One climbing up the wall.

Once he was above them, they kept moving.

Up above, they could hear gunfire, followed by screams from both the Deathless Ones and from Trinity's soldiers.

"We're surrounded! Fall back to- AAAAAAAAAARRGH!"

Lara and Owen watched as the soldier fell to his death.

"...Like I said," said Owen. "Poor bastards."

The domed roof of the tower they were climbing was blown apart, so they ducked under the ledge they were on to avoid the falling rocks.

"Keep climbing!" Owen shouted as they continued to make their way up, even as the roof kept falling apart. As they kept going, Lara grabbed onto the Cross on top, but then, she screamed as she felt her leg get grabbed, causing her to look down and see one of the Deathless Ones.

"How the hell did he get up here so fast?!" Owen questioned.

"Let go!" Lara shouted as she tried to kick him off, but he wouldn't release her. Left with no choice, Lara drew her pistol and began to shoot him continuously until he finally began to lose his grip, then she kicked him in the face, forcing him to drop into the abyss below.

Owen pulled her up, then they looked and saw the Deathless Ones all over, fighting Trinity soldiers.

In the distance, heading up a staircase to one of the towers, being escorted by soldiers, was Ana.

"Let's go," Lara said, then she and Owen got moving again.

" **Lara, Owen!** " Sofia called from the radio. " **GET DOWN!** "

They took cover before Lara asked,  
"Sofia! Where are you?!"

A fireball hit the area ahead of them, blowing away the soldiers and Deathless Ones.

That's when they saw a catapult in the distance, being manned by Sofia and two of the villagers.

" **I see you, Lara, Owen!** " Sofia said. " **We'll do whatever we can to support you from here!** "

"I don't see Tsume with you," Lara said. "Is he all right?"

" **Konstantin shot him, twice!** " Sofia answered. " **He was trying to protect me!** "

"He got shot twice?!" Owen questioned.

" **He's currently with the healers,** " Sofia said.

"Please take care of him," Lara said. "And thank you, we'll take all the help we can get."

"Okay, now... I'm pissed," Owen said, darkly, then picked something big off the ground, lying next to a dead Trinity soldier.

It was a Browning M2 Aircraft machine gun. (Which is the size of a mini-gun)

Lara's eyes widened, "Owen...?"

"They're gonna pay," he replied, holding the big, heavy weapon with both hands and opened fire on the soldiers ahead of them. They were all killed in seconds.

Unfortunately, he had to drop it once he was done cause it was too heavy to take with him.

Soon, they began to climb their way up to the Chamber of Souls, clinging to a wall of ice. Snow began to blow around them as the wind whipped at them, wildly...but they wouldn't give up.

They had come too far, now.

Once they were at the top, Trinity's helicopter flew over them.

" **All squads, I have a visual on Croft and Taylor!** " Konstantin's voice said from the chopper's loudspeaker. " **They must not be allowed into the Chamber of Souls!** "

"Konstantin," Lara growled.

"First him, then his sister," Owen muttered.

A fireball flew at the chopper, but it moved out of the way.

"I don't think you'll be able to hit him," Lara said to Sofia over the radio.

" **We'll keep trying...** " Sofia said. " **I owe him for Tsume.** " Another fireball was launched, but the chopper dodged that one too. " **The helicopter is too fast, we'll never be able to hit him!** "

"Wait, I have an idea!" Owen said. "If we hit the fireball when it's near the chopper, the blast might hit it."

" **I hope you're right,** " Sofia said. " **Give us the signal, we'll be ready.** "

"I had the same idea!" Lara exclaimed, then kissed him briefly. "I love you!"

"Love you too!" he said, smiling.

Soon, they both looked up at the chopper, which prepared to shoot them with a machine gun.

"LET HER FLY!" Lara yelled into the walkie-talkie, causing a fireball to fly towards the helicopter, which Lara shot with her grenade launcher, which caused the fireball to explode and hit the helicopter!

"YEAH!" Owen yelled as he flipped the bird at it. "YOU GOT FUCKED!"

" **My God, it worked!** " Sofia exclaimed. " **You did it!** "

"It's not over yet, get ready to fire another shot," Lara said.

" **Ahh, damn it!** " Konstantin cursed. " **Send in a squad, now! I want them dead!** "

Lara and Owen pulled out their rifles and opened fire on the soldiers that showed up.

"COME ON!" Owen yelled as he shot several soldiers. "COME GET SOME, YOU BASTARDS!"

"EAT LEAD!" Lara shouted as she fired off several rounds, too, taking out at four at once!

Then Owen pulled out a grenade and threw it at three more, blowing them up!

" **Lara!** " Sofia called. " **Owen! We're under attack!** "

"You've gotta get outta there!" Owen shouted.

" **No! We're in this fight till the end!** " Sofia replied.

"...Thank you, Sofia," said Lara as she shot several more soldiers with her shotgun.

Once all the soldiers were killed...

" **Lara, Owen! He's headed back your way!** " Sofia warned them.

The chopper came back, firing missiles at them.

"GET DOWN!" Owen yelled as he and Lara took cover.

" **I wonder if that wolf I shot is dead yet,** " said Konstantin. " **He'd make a nice trophy.** "

"Sofia, launch another!" Owen said.

Another fireball flew over the helicopter, which Owen shot with his rifle, making it explode over the chopper. The fireball that had been launched was a super big one, so the explosion was bigger, spreading so much fire that the chopper started spinning out of control!

"Ha! Yes!" Lara yelled. "Gotcha, you son of a bitch!"

" **AHHHHH!** " Konstantin screamed as his chopper began to crash!

"THAT'S FOR TSUME!" Owen yelled, but then he and Lara ended up falling through the floor!

The helicopter crashing below them caused one of the support columns to fall and break the wooden floor.

They landed on a stone column, then hopped down to check the helicopter.

When they got close enough, the cockpit door was kicked open, knocking Lara and Owen back.

Konstantin jumped out, yelling in rage and frustration, and had his own Heckler & Koch G36KV assault rifle.

He opened fire on them, but Lara grabbed the discarded door to use as a shield while Owen dove to the side and drew his pistol.

He fired at Konstantin's left hand, hitting his old wound, making him scream in pain and dropped his rifle.

Lara charged at him with the door and rammed him with it, knocking him down. She kicked his rifle away from them and put down the door.

Konstantin drew his knife with his right hand and swung at her, but she jumped back,  
"NO! My destiny lies in the Chamber of Souls, I've come too far to be stopped now!"

Owen kicked the back of his left knee, making him kneel, then he punched him the face. Konstantin swung his knife at him, but he dodged, then Lara stabbed him in the chest!  
"That's for Tsume!"

Owen kicked him to the floor and spat on him.

"Ugh..." Konstantin groaned as he looked up at Lara and Owen, his temple bloody. "...This...this is not my destiny...I was meant for greatness!"

"...This was never your destiny," Lara replied. "Your sister let you believe that."

"...I did...all...all of this...for her..." Konstantin said, his breathing growing shallower.

The place started collapsing, so Lara and Owen turned to leave.

"Don't you walk away from me!" Konstantin yelled. "Wait! Trinity killed your father!"

Lara stopped and turned to him, "No, you're lying!"

"He begged for his life," Konstantin said. "And when that failed... he begged for yours."

"You're wrong!" Lara screamed, shaking her head, closing her eyes tightly and covering her ears. "Shut up! JUST SHUT UP!"

Owen put his hand on her shoulder to console her, and she calmed down.

"He was a pathetic man," Konstantin tried to goad again.

"Coming from a guy who let his sister manipulate him, you're the one who's pathetic," Owen shot back. "And you're not worth it." They turned to walk away. "Say hi to Mathias for me."

The floor collapsed under Konstantin and the flames spreading from the chopper consumed him! He screamed as he fell.

"Burn in hell," Lara muttered, then she and Owen sprinted up the steps to the Chamber of Souls.

As they neared a giant door, they saw that it already been opened.

"...She's already inside," said Owen before he looked at Lara. "...Lara...you ready for this?"

"...You know I am," Lara replied before she pushed open the door...and there was Ana, holding some sort of bundle in her arms while she kneeled on the floor.

They ran toward her.

"Ana, stop!" Lara called. "Your men are defeated. Your brother is dead."

Ana's eyes widened, "...No..."

"That is what Trinity has wrought," Lara said. "Death. And that's all they'll ever bring. Give this up."

Ana stood up, tears in her eyes, "I gave up everything for this. I have no intention of giving it to Trinity. What about your father? You're dooming him to be mocked by history. How can you give this up, when you're so close?"

Lara sighed, "I'm willing to make that sacrifice. I can't let you take it."

"Think of the millions suffering and dying," Ana pleaded. "We can save them. We can change the world. Together."

"Not like this. The cost is too high," Owen argued. "It's one thing to cure diseases, which I'm all for. But everything else... We aren't meant to live forever, Ana. Death is a part of life."

"Easy for you to say," Ana scoffed. "You're not the one who's dying."

"But this isn't about you," Lara said. "This is about humanity. About protecting what it means to be human."

Suddenly, a soldier wearing a white ski mask came rushing in.

"They're coming!" he shouted. "We're surrounded!"

Not long after, he was stabbed through the chest by a halberd, causing him to fall to the ground, revealing Jacob behind him!

"Lara! Owen!" he shouted.

"JACOB, LOOK OUT!" cried Lara while Ana shot him, three times, causing him to drop to his knees and hold his wounds.

"...The Source," he said as he looked up. "It's not meant for the world!"

Lara brought out her pistol, which caused Ana to point her gun at her, which in turn caused Owen to point his gun at Ana.

"You shoot her and I shoot you," he warned.

"This is your chance, Lara," Ana pleaded. "Everything I've done. Everything you've done. Another Croft doesn't have to die for this."

"But I'm willing to," Lara said.

The Deathless Ones started marching over to them, slowly.

Ana turned to face them, still holding the Source...then she looked back at Lara and Owen.

"Well, I'm not," she said before she started to fire at them.

"No, wait!" Owen shouted. "It's no use!"

But Ana didn't listen...and it wasn't too long before she ran out of ammo.

"They're called 'Deathless Ones' for a reason, you idiot!" Owen shouted.

"...Please," Ana said as she looked at Lara as the Deathless Ones were closing in. "I'm dying...this is my only hope."

With that...she opened the bundle.

"Ana, no!" Lara cried, right before there was a flash of blue light, which forced Owen to embrace Lara with his back turned to it, shielding them both from it.

The light originated from some kind of big crystal.

The light flowed into Ana's eyes for a few seconds before she fell over, dropping the crystal.

Owen picked it up to look at it, "So this is the Source..." He and Lara looked around, they were completely surrounded on all sides by the Deathless Ones.

Lara grabbed the Source and held it up in the air, like she was going to smash it into the ground.

"NOOO!" Ana screamed in a desperate, pleading tone.

Lara and Owen looked at Jacob, who nodded,  
"It's okay."

Lara sighed, "I'm sorry..." Then she smashed the Source to floor, shattering it into millions of pieces.

As soon as she did so, Jacob let out a scream of pain while the Deathless Ones let out unearthly shrieks. As for Ana, she dropped to the floor, covering her eyes while Lara and Owen held onto each other as beams of light flew all over the chamber. Before too long...the Deathless Ones all burned away into ash...leaving only their armor and weapons behind.

"...It's done," Owen whispered.

Lara ran over to Jacob, "Hold on, Jacob..."

"I've held on... for too long already..." Jacob panted.

Owen knelt down next to Lara, "You knew I'd come to destroy it, and that I wanted to convince her to do it too..."

"In all my years... I've met few as extraordinary as you two," Jacob coughed a bit, and laughed. "It's finally happening... my ending."

"I'm sorry..." Lara apologized, to Jacob and Owen. "All I wanted was to make a difference."

"You already have..." Jacob said, as his skin started turning grey. "You already have."

His skin turned completely grey and he turned to dust, blowing away in the wind. Nothing was left but his clothes.

"...Let's go," Owen said as he and Lara turned and walked out, but not before the latter went to help Ana, who was coughing heavily.

"...Come on, Ana," said Lara as she offered her hand. "Let's go..."

Ana looked up at Lara...before she took her hand, allowing her to help her to her feet as they headed out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a while, they had made it outside and walked through the snow...but Ana was having a hard time. She coughed harshly and sat down on a rock.

Lara turned to her, "Ana... You said 'another Croft doesn't have to die for this'. What did you mean by that?" Ana didn't answer, so Lara drew her pistol. "You killed my father, didn't you?"

"Trinity ordered his execution... but I couldn't do it," Ana said.

"You're lying!" Lara yelled.

"I loved him," Ana said, before she was shot in the chest, followed by the sound of a sniper rifle.

"No!" Lara exclaimed before she and Owen took cover behind the rocks.

The sniper eyed them through his scope, "It's done."

" **Good,** " A mysterious voice responded from his radio; the leader of Trinity.

"What about Croft and Taylor?" The sniper asked.

" **No,** " The mystery leader said. " **Not yet.** "

Lara and Owen looked in the sniper's direction, wondering why he didn't shoot them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _Scene Change_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara and Owen made it back to the Geothermal Valley, where Sofia was waiting to greet them.

"Where's my father?" she asked.

"We'll tell you in a minute," Lara said. "Where's Tsume?"

"Follow me," Sofia led them to one of the shacks.

There, Lara and Owen found Tsume, whose chest and right shoulder were wrapped up in bandages. His eyes were closed, but they could see that he was breathing, showing that he was still alive.

"It was a close call," Sofia began, "But he sure is a fighter."

"...He sure is," Lara said, proudly.

As soon as she spoke, Tsume's eyes opened and he looked up at her and Owen before his tail began to wag, causing both Lara and Owen to chuckle as they both went to pet him.

"Glad you're okay buddy," Owen said.

"Didn't want to give Hana and the pups bad news," Lara added.

"So, what happened to my father?" Sofia asked.

Lara and Owen looked at each other, then at Sofia.

"It's a long story..." Lara said.

A couple minutes later, Lara and Owen had told Sofia everything. Jacob being the Prophet, the Deathless Ones, and destroying the Source.

"I know it's a lot to take in..." Owen said.

"I wish I could have been with him at the end," Sofia said.

"Knowing you and your people would be safe gave him comfort," Lara assured her. "He went peacefully."

Sofia was silent for a few seconds, then shook Lara and Owen's hands, "Thank you, both of you. Our oaths have been fulfilled."

"What will you do now?" Owen asked.

"This is still our home," Sofia said. "We will rebuild, but there is much work to be done."

"We can help if you want, let Tsume heal," Lara said. "Besides, there could still be things to discover here."

"Thank you, we could use the help," Sofia said, then walked off.

"Let's hope it doesn't take too long," Owen said. "We have some postponed things to get back to."

"I know," Lara said, smiling.

She and him kissed, passionately.

* * *

 **And that's the end! For now.**

 **Fang and I would never kill any of our OCs.**

 **So, the two stories that come after this that take place before Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Blood Ties and Wedding and Honeymoon!**

 **That's right, it's finally happening~!**

 **Read and review, please!**


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